Why I’ll Never Sell my Apple Stock

There are unannounced products that could cause the stock to skyrocket

I’ve shown several people how much profit I’ve made on my Apple stock (AAPL). At the time of this writing, I’ve generated 203% since I began buying Apple stock every month since March of 2018.

Everyone has asked me when I plan to sell.

I scoff. I never plan on selling.

Here are the reasons I’ve given them why it’s worth holding onto AAPL as a long-term investment.

Unannounced product releases

Some people say Apple plans to enter the TV or car market. There have been concepts and mock-ups released, but those speculations have existed since 2010.

I’m more excited about Apple’s possible entry into the virtual reality market.

Rumors have said Apple has been working on a virtual reality headset (concept art found here). This rumor has circulated since Apple filed a patent for a virtual reality headset. Recently, rumors of Apple hiring Facebook’s former AR chief of communications came out. This further spread the idea of a virtual reality headset.

A few days ago, Apple offered up to $180,000 in stock bonuses to their top talent to prevent them from applying and working at Meta (FB).

Seeing as how Apple has been working on AR for years, it’s realistic to assume Apple will enter the virtual reality market and compete with Microsoft, Meta, and Google soon.

If Apple releases a virtual reality headset, it’s safe to assume they’ll sell millions of the product and developers will create apps and games for the headset.

This will result in millions, if not billions of dollars in revenue, which will lead to a higher stock price.

The global chip shortage hinders Apple’s growth

If you’ve gone to a car dealership recently, you would know there are hardly any vehicles up for sale right now.

No, they aren’t selling more cars than they can keep on the lot. Rather, it has to do with the global chip shortage.

When the pandemic started, microchip manufacturers shut down their factories to prevent the spread of infection. With more people at home, people started buying more electronics. Most people bought webcams and microphones to hold virtual conferences, and millions of students in the U.S. had to adjust to doing classwork on a laptop.

Chip production declined as demand for electronics went up.

When Apple’s CEO Tim Cook spoke to investors during the earnings call, he said they didn’t meet expectations because of the global chip shortage.

It’s safe to assume when the chip shortage recovers, sales will take off exponentially.

More sales will lead to more profit, which will lead to a higher stock price.

Apple continues to sell millions of iPhones and iPads

Despite the news Tim Cook delivered to shareholders, Apple still created $84 billion in revenue, which resulted in Apple being up 29% since last year.

As long as people continue to buy Apple products, and as long as people purchase subscriptions to Apple’s services, this number will stay high and continue higher.

With Apple’s rumored integration of virtual reality headsets, people who want to consume the content will likely make the jump to purchasing not only the headset but a compatible iPhone as well.

After all, Apple has always focused on the experience and ecosystem between its products.

We will likely see developers jumping onto the hype train, hoping to make apps that will enhance the user’s experience. With more apps and games in the app store, consumers will justify purchasing the headset for themselves or others.

Apple isn’t the first but is the loudest

Apple did not create the first smartphone. Smartphones existed in 2006, but they were bulky, hard to use, and unattractive to the average consumer.

When Apple released the iPhone, it solved many problems people didn’t see as a burden.

Why use a stylus when you can use your finger? Why settle for a tiny screen with a keyboard when you can make the keyboard disappear when not in use?

The same applies to the tablet market. The iPad wasn’t the first, but it currently controls 37% of the market, followed by Samsung at 20%.

When Apple released the Apple Watch, many didn’t see it as anything special. Yet, Google has not released a watch that could compete with the Apple Watch. Nor does Google offer seamless connectivity between the watch and the smartphone.

Samsung has tried to compete, but it currently holds 10% of the market compared to Apple’s 40%.

Apple won’t be the first in the virtual reality world, with Decentraland, Sandbox, Oculus, and Microsoft currently dominating, but it will be the loudest.

Once Apple releases the hardware, developers will create the software consumers didn’t know they were hungry for.

Institutions are bullish on AAPL

Several Wall Street investors have chimed in with their predictions on the long-term price of Apple stock.

WalletInvestor claims Apple stock will rise to $387 within five years. Meanwhile, Gov Capital claims it’ll go up to $726 within that time.

If those bullish signs come to fruition, with Apple’s current stock price, you could at least double your money in five years. You could quadruple it if Gov Capital’s prediction comes true. But that will only be determined based on how well Apple performs year after year.

Most of the market has been moved by Apple

One last thing to note is that Apple is a part of some of the biggest and most reliable index funds.

SPY, which tracks the S&P 500, has 5.9% of their allocation in Apple stock.

VTI, or the Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund, holds 5.5% in Apple stock. QQQ, which tracks the NASDAQ, holds 11.6% of their funds in Apple.

When investors buy index funds because they want to hold a safe investment, what they’re really doing is buying Apple stock. As long as index funds contain Apple stock, the price will continue to go up.

Conclusion

I don’t see myself selling my Apple stock. The potential for Apple to fail just isn’t there in my eyes. Apple is too big to fail, with so many successful products currently existing. Future products will create new markets for its current consumers that’ll drive up the stock price, and provide huge profits for me in the future.

I am not a financial adviser, and this is not financial advice. This is strictly my opinion and is served for informational purposes only.

Click here if you’d like unlimited access to more of my writing and everything else on Medium. Note this is an affiliate link, and I will receive a portion of your membership fees, which helps support my writing!