Apple 'firmly remains' Wedbush's top pick, adds tech sector is 'overlooked'
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Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is still Wedbush Securities' top pick in technology, as the investment firm said on Thursday that the sector is being "overlooked" going into 2023, amid macro uncertainties.
Analyst Dan Ives, who lowered his price target on Apple (AAPL) to $175 on Wednesday, noted that the demand side of the tech giant is still holding up amid economic weakness and the stock's risk/reward is a "table pounder at current levels."
Apple (AAPL) shares were fractionally higher at $126.68 in premarket trading on Thursday.
In addition, Ives noted that the easiest thing for Wall Street to do is be negative on tech, given the worsening economic conditions around the globe, earnings multiple compression, technical breakdowns for many stocks and worries over what guidance for 2023 will look like.
"However, our approach into 2023 is a much more opportunistic one for the tech sector as this near-term macro climate uncertainty will lead to the next growth cycle over the coming years that begin now in our opinion," Ives wrote in a note to clients.
The analyst added that tech companies are working to preserve margins and get smaller, citing recent layoff announcements from Salesforce (CRM) and Amazon (AMZN).
In recent months, companies like Microsoft (MSFT) and Meta Platforms (META) have also made layoff announcements. 
Ives also noted that Microsoft (MSFT) and Salesforce (CRM) are the firm's top cloud software picks for 2023.
In addition, Ives also noted that guidance from the broader tech sector is likely to be "conservative" coming out to start the year and with multiples already below their five-year mean, tech is the "most under-owned" since 2009.
Other companies that are viewed favorably by Wedbush include Palo Alto Networks (PANW), Check Point Software (CHKP), CyberArk (CYBR), Tenable (TENB), Zscaler (ZS) and CrowdStrike (CRWD).
On Wednesday, Loup Ventures analyst Gene Munster said he is still optimistic about Apple (AAPL) in the long run and expects the stock could reach $250 by next year.