The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI +1.79%) was down 20 points as of 11:30 a.m. EDT. A few stocks were outperforming the broader market,with Apple (AAPL +2.65%), Glu Mobile (GLUU +0.00%), and eBay (EBAY +2.64%) experiencing notable moves to the upside.
Apple rises on price target boost
Shares of Apple rose 0.5% after Canaccord Genuity raised its price target on the iPhone maker from $102 to $112. Canaccord is particularly positive on Apple's upcoming iPhone 6, which the firm believes will achieve record sales. At the same time, if Apple offers a larger-screen variant, it could charge a margin-boosting premium.
Canaccord joins a long list of analysts with high expectations for Apple's upcoming iPhone. The anticipated larger-screen version could entice many longtime customers to upgrade, which would benefit shareholders, at least in the near term.
Also on Friday, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple's forthcoming iWatch won't go into production until November. If that's the case, the device may not go on sale this year, which would run contrary to what many observers anticipate. Kuo's report remains unverified, but he has a fairly good track record of predicting Apple's forthcoming products.
Source: Wikimedia Commons.
Glu Mobile's Kardashian continues to dominate
Glu Mobile stock rose nearly 8% on Friday, continuing a monthlong run in which shares of the mobile-game maker have rallied more than 60%. Much of that rally has been based on Glu Mobile's Kim Kardashian: Hollywood, a free-to-play mobile game that has dominated the app charts since it was released late last month.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Glu Mobile's CEO said the game could be the company's biggest game of the year. Although it's only been out for a few weeks, the game could generate hundreds of millions of dollars should its popularity persist. Cowen estimates that the game could bring in $200 million on an annual basis -- this is significant, given that Glu Mobile's first-quarter revenue was less than $50 million.
eBay rises on report of better sales
Shares of e-commerce giant eBay rose more than 2% on Friday after a report indicated that company sales could be trending up. According to ChannelAdvisor, eBay's same-store sales rose 12.3% in June on an annual basis, up from 11.5% in May.
Investors will get a better look at eBay's financials in a matter of days. The company is expected to deliver its quarterly results next Wednesday after the market closes. Analysts expect the company to deliver earnings per share of about $0.68 on revenue of roughly $4.38 billion.
eBay has been a notable stock in recent months, with activist investor Carl Icahn pushing for a spinoff of the PayPal business. Icahn dropped his proposal back in April, but investors may be losing patience with eBay's management.
