Apple Inc AAPL shares are on an icy toboggan ride headinginto the end of the year, but 2023 is packedwith a series of potential growth catalysts for the Cupertino-based company.
What To Know:Wednesdayon CNBC's "Squawk Box,"Steve Kovach, a tech correspondent for CNBC who covers Apple, laid out a handful of potential catalysts for the iPhone makerin the new year.The first? The fintech space.
"Apple is expected to launch its buy now, pay later service called Apple Pay Later," Kovach said.
The service is expected to compete with several other delayed payment services, includingAffirm HoldingsInc AFRM .
Apple also plannedto beef up its fintech offerings by launching high-yield savings accounts for Apple Card customers, he said.
Kovach told CNBCadvertising was another area to watch in 2023. Apple expanded its ad choices inits App Store this year andplannedto widen its advertising base to other platformssuch as Apple Maps and Apple TV+.
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On the hardware side of the business, people will pay close attention to iPhone deliveries following delayed shipments in the current quarter. But the real catalyst could come in the second half of 2023 when Apple was expected to launch its long-awaited AR/VR device.
"That would make it the first major new product since the Apple Watch launched back in 2015," Kovach said.
The augmented reality device was expected to directly compete withMeta PlatformsInc META , he added.
"Tim Cook and company will have to make a compelling case for thedevice that Meta has failed to do so far," he said.
Apple could be set up for a strong year, but Kovach notedsome potential headwindsinclude declining App Store spending anda strong U.S. dollar, which hurts the tech giant's services business.
See Also:Apple Down 25%, Meta 65%, Amazon 49% As Tech Stocks Hit Rough Patch In 2022: 4 Factors That Could Work In Sector's Favor In 2023
AAPL Price Action: Apple has a 52-week high of $182.94. It's making new 52-week lows on Wednesday.
Apple shares are down 1.57% at $127.90at time of publication, according toBenzinga Pro.
Photo: Courtesy of Apple
