The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI 0.86%) was up 2.1% at 1:50 p.m. EDT Monday despite extreme uncertainty surrounding the pandemic and the recovery of the U.S. economy. U.S. states including Florida and Texas have been reporting record numbers of confirmed cases, and reports are indicating that hospitals in some areas are running out of ICU capacity.
Driving the Dow higher on Monday was Apple (AAPL +0.80%), which received two analyst price target bumps. Disney (DIS 0.98%) stock was also higher despite news that the company was re-closing its Hong Kong park due to a surge in COVID-19 cases.
Apple stock hits new high
Apple received two analyst price target bumps on Monday which helped propel the stock to a new all-time high.
Morgan Stanley raised its Apple price target from $340 to $419 and reiterated its "overweight" rating. Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty argued that Apple's iPhone trade-in program, as well as the high resale value of iPhones, gives the company a competitive advantage. Huberty sees the trade-in program driving adoption of 5G iPhones later this year.
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Wedbush is even more optimistic on Apple, raising its price target from $425 to $450 and maintaining its "outperform" rating. Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives expects 5G to drive Apple to a $2 trillion market cap next year. Ives has grown more confident in the iPhone growth story after positive channel checks in Asia, and he sees China as an important component to the growth story. Wedbush is also optimistic on Apple's services business, assigning a $600 billion to $650 billion valuation to the fast-growing part of Apple.
Neither analyst appears concerned about the impact of the pandemic and the recession on demand for iPhones later this year. If the pandemic is still raging in the United States when Apple launches its 5G iPhones, demand could be severely muted.
Apple stock was up 2.9% in the afternoon. Including Monday's rally, the tech stock is now up about 35% since the beginning of the year.
Disney re-closes Hong Kong park
Disney has reopened its Disney World resort in Florida despite that state posting record numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases. In Hong Kong, where daily cases have begun to pick up again, Disney is re-closing Hong Kong Disneyland.
Disney's Hong Kong park will close on July 15. Hong Kong's government has shut down various types of businesses and limited group gatherings to four people in response to an increase in COVID-19 cases. Hong Kong Disneyland Resort hotels will stay open with a lower level of services.
Hong Kong is reporting a few dozen daily cases of COVID-19, enough of a surge to prompt aggressive action from the government. Florida recorded over 15,000 new cases on Sunday. New shutdown orders may be inevitable if the state can't get the virus under control, which would likely mean that Disney World would need to be shut down again.
Disney's parks are a critical part of its business, and its U.S. parks are particularly important. With the U.S. failing to contain the virus, Disney's ability to keep its parks open remains highly uncertain. Disney stock was up 0.4% in the afternoon despite the Hong Kong news.
