Institutional investors positioned 'neutral/negative' on Apple prior to iPhone event: MS
Luis Alvarez

Investment firm Morgan Stanley noted that investors are "slightly more positively skewed" on Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) ahead of its iPhone event next week than they were prior to its most recent earnings report, but institutional investors are still leaning negative on the tech giant.
Analyst Erik Woodring said Apple (AAPL) continues to be a "battleground" for investors, as bears believe it over-earned in fiscal 2021 and fiscal 2022, while bulls see it as more immune to macro challenges. The analyst added Apple (AAPL) shares have outperformed the S&P 500 by 3% since reporting its most recent quarterly results. 
"However, we still believe that institutional investors are positioned neutral/negative, and any positive surprises on iPhone pricing, new features, carrier/channel subsidies and/or other products launched can help shares re-rate towards our $180 price target," Woodring wrote in a note to clients.
Apple (AAPL) shares were fractionally higher at $158.18 in premarket trading. 
Next week, Apple (AAPL) is widely expected to reveal its iPhone 14 product lineup, along with new versions of its Apple Watch and possibly updated AirPods.
Counterpoint Research released new data this week that notes that Apple (AAPL) has surpassed Android (GOOG) (GOOGL) to account for more than half of all smartphones being used in the U.S.