Apple Stock Awaits The Biggest iPhone Launch In Years. Now John Ternus Has To Deliver.

Apple is heading into one of its most closely watched product launches in years with its stock up sharply since late June, putting new CEO John Ternus in the spotlight as the company prepares to unveil its first foldable iPhone.

The company's event begins at 10 a.m. Pacific time Wednesday at its Cupertino, California, headquarters. The company has not disclosed what products it will introduce, but new iPhone Pro models, Apple Watches and AirPods are also expected.

Ternus, Apple's longtime hardware engineering chief, became CEO on Sept. 1, succeeding Tim Cook. He joined Apple in 2001 and has overseen hardware engineering across the iPhone, Mac, iPad and Apple Watch.

Expectations have risen along with Apple's share price. The stock gained about 15% between June 25 and Tuesday's close, adding roughly $570 billion in market value, though it remained below its July record. Apple shares were down in late-morning trading Wednesday.

The foldable model would mark Apple's entry into a category where Samsung, Huawei and other manufacturers already compete. The company has spent years developing the device, which would represent the iPhone's biggest change in form factor since the iPhone X arrived in 2017.

Morgan Stanley analysts led by Erik Woodring expect the foldable iPhone to start at between $2,300 and $2,500. They estimate Apple could ship about 6.5 million units during its fiscal first quarter ending in December, producing roughly $14 billion in sales.

Pricing across the rest of the lineup is also drawing attention as rising memory costs put pressure on device makers. JPMorgan analyst Samik Chatterjee told clients last week that pricing was the key unknown heading into the launch, Bloomberg reported, as Apple tries to protect margins without weakening demand.

Apple is coming off record results for its fiscal third quarter ended June 27, when revenue rose 16% from a year earlier to $109.4 billion. iPhone, Mac and Services revenue all set June-quarter records, while diluted earnings per share increased 29% to $2.02, according to Apple's quarterly results.

Analysts expect annual revenue to increase about 15% this fiscal year, which would be Apple's fastest growth since 2021. Its shares trade at roughly 33 times expected earnings over the next 12 months, compared with a 10-year average multiple of about 23.

Apple has spent far less on AI infrastructure than rivals including Microsoft and Alphabet, whose large data-center investments have drawn greater scrutiny from investors, Reuters reported. The company's own progress in artificial intelligence remains closely watched as competitors incorporate generative AI into more consumer products.