Investing.com - Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has been pushing to slash expenses across the top-end Pro models of the latest iteration of its flagship iPhone, helping boost gross margins, according to analysts at Bank of America.
Citing third-party teardowns of the iPhone 16 Pro Max and its predecesor, the analysts suggested that the tech giant has been "very focused on driving lower costs across the Pro lines where the mix of the iPhones is steadily increasing."
The overall cost of manufacturing the iPhone 16 Pro Max is 5% less than the iPhone 15 Pro Max, the BofA analysts estimated. All else being equal, this would add 320 basis points to gross margins of the iPhone 16 Pro Max, the analysts said.
They added that the assumptions do not adjust for Apple's ability to procure memory more efficienctly, so the calculations likely understate the total gross margin benefit.
Although the analysts noted that there is less of a year-on-year improvement in costs for non-Pro models, they maintained their "buy" rating of Apple, citing "margin resiliency" and the adoption of the company's artificial intelligence offering over time.
"Our 'buy' rating on Apple is based on expected strong iPhone upgrade cycle in [the 2025 fiscal year], [the 2026 fiscal year] driven by the need for latest hardware to enable [generative] AI features, higher growth in services revenue, higher margins from more internally developed silicon, continuing capital returns, AI features that can drive higher institutional ownership, and risk around legal issues being manageable," the analysts said.
The comments come after data earlier this week showed that smartphone shipments for Apple declined globally in the fourth quarter, reflecting greater competition from Chinese rivals like Xiaomi. The worldwide smartphone market has begun to rebound after contracting for two years, fueled in part by Chinese device makers moving to offer a greater number of cheaper smartphones and focusing in on the local market.
Apple's global shipments dropped by 4.1% to 76.9 million units in the quarter, preliminary figures from the International Data Corporation found.
(Reuters contributed reporting.)