Weekly "Focus" and the Vision Pro

This week’s note is written in memory of Rosemary Goldhar, my father’s spouse, who passed away last week and who was a HUGE fan of Apple.

 

Hitting the Apple stores in the US today is their newest product – a virtual reality/augmented reality headset called the Vision Pro.

 

 

For the princely sum of US$3,499 (or more), you can navigate the world of computing using only your eyes, hand, or voice. The reviews I have read so far have been quite positive, the major drawbacks being the weight, battery life and of course the price. The launch of the Vision Pro is even the cover story in this month’s Vanity Fair magazine. Remember when there were lineups outside Apple stores to buy the latest iPhone? Today, the Vision Pro is bringing the crowds back and starting to put Apple in direct competition with a headset from Meta Platforms* (formerly known as Facebook). Both companies reported their latest quarterly earnings this week and investors were more favourable to Meta’s results, who surprised shareholders by introducing their first ever dividend.

 

		Total Return in 2024		Dividend Yield
Apple (AAPL)		-2.9%		0.5%
Meta Platforms (META)		+11.5%		0.5%

Source: FactSet, Values as of February 1, 2024

 

This week’s "Focus" from our economics team is attached.

 

Have a great weekend,

 

Brad

Senior Portfolio Manager and Senior Investment Advisor