Apple Could Be Looking At More Partnerships In EV Quest: Analyst

With South Korean auto giant Hyundai Motor Company GDR HYMTF confirming that it's in talks with Apple Inc. AAPL regarding an electric vehicle manufacturing partnership, an analyst at Wedbush sees many more tie-ups on the horizon.

The Apple Analyst: Daniel Ives has an Outperform rating and a $160 price target for Apple shares.

The Apple Thesis: Apple is likely in the early stages of talks with Hyundai, Ives said. The tech giant could be looking at a handful of strategic partnerships and collaborations globally, with existing automakers on the EV front.

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The Hyundai news is in line with Ives' earlier expectation that Apple will ultimately announce a EV strategic partnership in 2021, laying the groundwork to enter the burgeoning EV space.

A potential larger strategic partnership with an established EV player such as Tesla Inc. TSLA or Volkswagen AG VWAGY would be a golden partnership for the next decade tapping into this EV opportunity, the analyst said.

The chances of strategic partnerships with the likes of a Tesla, Volkswagen, Hyundai or other auto manufacturers in China such as XPeng Inc. – ADR XPEV and Nio Inc. – ADR NIO are in the 70%+ range over the next few years, Ives estimates.