Jefferies Maintains Conviction List Buy on Apple Following Ruling

Jefferies & Company published a research report on Apple

that commented on the company's recent jury ruling against Samsung. In the report, Jefferies wrote, "We believe this is a huge victory for Apple. The jury found that Samsung had infringed upon 6 of Apple's patents related to both utility and design. Apple was awarded a minimum of $1.05B in damages and is looking for an injunction against infringing Samsung products. We believe this is positive for Apple but would expect a settlement following an unsuccessful appeal by Samsung. We believe Apple will likely pursue other Android players. The covered patents in the trial included three utility patents: '163 for tap to enlarge, '381 for scrolling bounce-back, and '915 for distinguishing touch gestures; and four design patents: '087 for the ornamental design of the iPhone, '677 for the front design of the iPhone, '305 for icon designs, and '889 for industrial design of tablets. The jury found many of Samsung's smartphones and tablets (including the Galaxy line) infringed all but patent '889." Jefferies maintained its Conviction List Buy rating and $900 price target on Apple, which closed Friday at $663.22.