Evercore ISI’s AI Hardware Picks: Storage, Networking and Apple Opportunities

An Evercore ISI analyst forecasts strong growth ahead for storage makers, networking providers and Apple in the AI hardware space.

Storage Manufacturers: Riding the AI Wave

■Western Digital, Q2 2024 revenue of 4.2 billion dollars with a 12% year‑over‑year increase.

■Seagate Technology, SSD shipments up 18% while data‑center capacity is projected to rise 30% by end‑2025.

■Micron Technology, anticipating a 22% rise in DRAM prices in 2025, plans to lift inventory by 15% to expand margins.

Networking Infrastructure: The Backbone of AI Workloads

■Cisco Systems, targeting 6.5 billion dollars of networking equipment sales in 2024 driven by 5G and cloud migration.

■Juniper Networks, expects a 14% improvement in gross margin for its AI‑optimized router line in 2025.

■Arista Networks, forecasts 20% annual growth in data‑center switch sales, leaving a 5.8 billion dollar order backlog at the close of 2024.

Apple: Ecosystem Expansion as a Catalyst

■Apple, rumored to launch the M4 chip series in 2025, aiming to boost Mac and iPad performance by 30%.

■Services segment targets 80 billion dollars in annual revenue after surpassing 100 million active iCloud and Apple Music subscribers by end‑2024.

■International sales outside the U.S. are seen growing 12%, while India’s manufacturing capacity is set to double by 2025.

Sinan Kılıç notes that in AI‑hardware investments, storage and networking infrastructure play a non‑negotiable foundational role; capacity expansions and pricing dynamics in these sectors will dictate long‑term portfolio resilience. Furthermore, Apple’s ecosystem broadening supports hardware demand, demanding that valuation multiples keep pace with forecasted earnings growth.