10 Most Promising Long-Term Stocks According to Hedge Funds

3. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 184

Analyst Upside as of October 13, 2024: 10%

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), the popular company behind the iPhone, ranks third on our list of the most promising stocks according to hedge funds. The company offers a range of products including iCloud, Apple Pay, Apple Music, and Apple TV+.

The company is leveraging artificial intelligence to offer unmatched experiences to its customers. During the fiscal third quarter of 2024, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) launched Apple Intelligence, a personal intelligence by Apple backed by AI. The system is integrated into the new iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

Speaking of its biggest avenue for revenue, the iPhone generated revenue worth $39.3 billion during FQ3 2024, making up for nearly 45% of the total revenue. Over the past 10 years, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has grown its revenue and net income by 8% and 10% respectively.

Last month, the company launched its new iPhone 16, iOS 18 system, AirPods 4, and Apple Watch Series 10 around the world. While Apple has its bets on the new iPhone, one can say that its integrated artificial intelligence systems will play a role in boosting financial performance for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL).

Columbia Contrarian Core Fund stated the following regarding Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in its Q2 2024 investor letter:

“Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) – Despite the stock falling after announcing earnings in late May, Apple regained ground toward the end of the quarter, fueled by the company’s long-awaited AI announcement at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WDC). At the conference, the company showcased some of its new AI features powered by Apple Intelligence that would be coming to Apple products and also announced a partnership with ChatGPT. Investors greatly welcomed the announcement of Apple’s AI strategy and the stock surged, passing Microsoft as the world’s most valuable company (although this hallmark wouldn’t last). Beta testing of these new features will be coming later this summer, but the initial promise and excitement looks to be a potential catalyst for an upgrade cycle, as the company looks to persuade users who have had the same smartphone for years to consider an upgrade.”