March 26th, 2024 – Portfolio holding Apple (AAPL) (0.6 units purchased @183.96) is facing a series of difficulties in China due to changes in the national macro environment and the fierce competition by Huawei, factors that caused a 24% drop in iPhone sales in the first six weeks of 2024. The Cupertino based company is trying to overcome this negative period, with a high probability that it will double down on the chinese smartphone market. What underlines this objective the most is the latest Tim Cook’s trip to China, during which he not only opened Apple’s newest flagship store in Shanghai and met key suppliers, but also joined the China Development Forum in Beijing. In addition to this, the Chinese minister of commerce Wang Wentao stated that Apple’s presence in the country is vital for China’s development, with Cook promising a huge increase of Apple’s infrastructural investments in the country in order to improve the crucial local supply chain.
On Tuesday, Viking Therapeutics’ (VKTX) stock price rose by 16.82% at 4:00PM EDT. The main reason behind this market trend is that the company just announced that its experimental weight loss pill produced good results during a brief study and, thanks to this, it will enter into its final development stages during 2024. This once a day tablet is the oral version of its experimental weight loss injection, which itself has proven to be quite good during some previous tests. This news will probably help Viking Therapeutics, one of the main biotech SMEs companies worldwide, to compete with the pharmaceutical giants Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, with Viking being considered as their main potential competitor as well as a good target for a takeover. It comes with no surprise that Viking Therapeutics’ share price went up by 345% from the beginning of 2024.
Author: Piero Foberti