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The financial sector appears to still be undervalued relative to the S&P 500, despite its massive run-up since the lows of the financial crisis and I believe Bank of America is leading the pack of undervalued U.S. bank stocks.
(by Capital Traders Group)

Tuesday afternoon, wireless carrier T-Mobile finally relented and announced that it will begin carrying Apple’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone. Bears can attack market share numbers all they want, but we’ve shown plenty of evidence supporting why the iPhone is exceptionally popular. Commscore showed data giving Apple a 37.8% market share in January, Verizon (NYSE: VZ) reported that iPhones accounted for 63% of smartphones during the fourth quarter, and AT&T (NYSE: T) had iPhones accounting for 84% of its smartphone mix during the same period. Demand for the product remains robust, in Valuentum's view.

by Capital Traders Group
The financial sector appears to still be undervalued relative to the S&P 500, despite its massive run-up since the lows of the financial crisis and I believe Bank of America is leading the pack of undervalued U.S. bank stocks.

This news as well as a dividend increase soon, should move AAPL rapidly.

Avi Greengart, who covers consumer technology for Current Analysis, thinks the iPhone “may be more important than ever. He told the publication that “T-Mobile not only needs the iPhone for subscriber retention, it is clearly hoping to use the iPhone to showcase the benefits of its new pricing and financing plans and pull subscribers from rivals.” The stock market is at 5-year highs! Discover the best stocks to buy in today’s market.
Earlier this year, T-Mobile’s Chief Executive Officer John Legere unveiled a new guiding philosophy for the company’s operations; as he noted in an interview with Reuters at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, he is now molding the company as the “uncarrier.” In his estimation, this strategy will create a perceived difference between itself and other companies in the industry, and attract customers from its larger rivals.
Thus far, T-mobile has declined to comment on whether the iPhone would be revealed at Tuesday’s event, although a representative has said “it was worth” attending. However, CNET did note that “it may be a pipe dream that the iPhone shows up” Tuesday because Legere hinted that at the Consumer Electronics Show the carrier would talk about its plans before launching the device. Greengart also gave a reason for why T-Mobile would not announce the iPhone; the carrier may be waiting on a broader deployment of its LTE and HSPA+ network before adding the device to its portfolio, he explained.

Apple (AAPL) suffered a serious public relations hit when its Apple Maps product was unveiled to the world. Its latest purchase may be about changing that perception, even if it comes six months later.
Over the weekend, Apple acquired WiFiSLAM, a indoor-GPS company. According to The Wall Street Journal, Apple paid around $20 million for the company, but the impact could be far greater as it pertains to Apple Maps.
The Silicon Valley-based start-up has developed a way for mobile apps to know a user's location inside a building using Wi-Fi. This will allow maps and location sharing services to more accurately portray positions of businesses, people, etc., especially as it pertains to being inside a building. If accuracy is improved using the company's technology, that would make Apple's data that much more reliable and perhaps change the perception that Apple Maps is inferior to other mapping solutions.

The company has acquired WiFiSlam, a start-up company that helps to improve the accuracy of indoor maps and other services by locating the user’s position inside a building more accurately. Indoor maps look like they could become a new battleground between big companies seeking a cartographical edge on their rivals.
Google is pouring resources into an indoor maps initiative to make it easier to find stores, bathrooms and other landmarks inside shopping malls, airports, large department stores and transit stations. The company says it has indoor maps for 10,000 locations worldwide already, including airports, Ikea stores, hotels, libraries, museums and one of the most bewildering kinds of labyrinths known to man — Las Vegas casinos.
WiFiSlam could give Apple some of the smarts it needs to make iPhones better navigation devices when they are under a roof. WiFiSlam says its technology can pinpoint the location of a mobile device to “2.5m accuracy using only ambient WiFi signals that are already present in buildings.” Locating a mobile user precisely on a map indoors can be tricky because the GPS signals that help with navigation don’t usually penetrate walls and windows. The acquisition was worth about $20 million. “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.

Apple and BlackBerry: Battle of the Fruits Abroad
Morgan Stanley has hopes for BlackBerry’s (NASDAQ:BBRY) stock, but Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) may quash some of that hope as it moves into foreign markets with more strength.

BlackBerry stock fell nearly 4 percent on Monday after Goldman Sachs cut its rating, citing a disappointing U.S. launch for the smartphone maker's new touchscreen device that went on sale in the United States on Friday.
"Our retail checks at over 20 store locations since March 22, including at AT&T, Best Buy, and RadioShack, revealed a surprising lack of marketing support and poor positioning of the product," Goldman Sachs analyst Simona Jankowski said in a note to clients on Monday. Jankowski also said advertising of the product launch was limited. "As a result, despite the product itself being relatively well received by sales associates and online reviews, sell-through at most locations was less than 10 per day," said Jankowski. The brokerage firm cut its rating on shares of BlackBerry to "neutral" from "buy."
BlackBerry shares were down 3.9 percent at $14.33 in trading before the morning bell in the United States.

In Libya, the government is giving cash-strapped Egypt $2 billion and speeding up visa for thousands of laborers seeking to work in the oil rich country. And Brazil’s government is casting about for ways to revise stalled economic growth. WSJ: In Afghanistan, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Afghanistan to shore up a troubled alliance, following compromises by the U.S. that could ease friction between Washington and Kabul. Elsewhere, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke attacked the charge that his sy-money policies are provoking a global currency war. And Hon Hai Precision Industry (HNHPF) said net profit rose 16% in 2012 from the previous year, as the Taiwan-based assembler of Apple (AAPL) products saw its revenue increase as the U.S. company’s sales grew.

Today we will look at good yield opportunities within the technology sector. High yield from the sector is a relatively new development, but the sector has been one of biggest dividend payout raisers over the past five years. In fact, the sector now accounts for over 14% of all dividends within the S&P vs. under 6% in 2007.
Over the next couple of weeks all eyes will be on Apple (AAPL). The tech juggernaut is widely expected to raise its dividend significantly before its earnings report on April 23. A Bloomberg poll of analysts showed an increase of 56% in Apple's dividend as the consensus. I think a substantial dividend hike is in the bag, as otherwise the company could end 2013 with almost $170 billion in cash on hand if it does nothing. The company first started to pay a dividend last year, and the projected dividend hike will take Apple's yield to over 3.5%. This is above the yield of traditional dividend payer Procter & Gamble (PG) and on par with utility NextEra Energy (NEE). In addition, Apple's shares are selling at lower valuations than either of these traditional dividend payers in addition to having much better growth prospects.
Apple's decision will have ripple effects throughout the tech sector, especially for mature tech companies with substantial cash on their balance sheets. These include Cisco Systems (CSCO) and Microsoft (MSFT). CSCO has over $45 billion in cash and marketable securities on the books.

11:38 AM In adding Apple (AAPL +0.9%) to its Most Preferred list, UBS/Union Bank of Switzerland names dividend/buyback hikes, a low-end iPhone, and a calendar Q4 China Mobile deal as possible catalysts.

Apple has bought WiFiSLAM, a startup that has been developing a way to use WiFi hotspots to help smartphones navigate large indoor spaces, like stores, airports and conference centers.
The purchase is part of Apple's efforts to bolster its own mapping and location capabilities, after breaking up with Google Inc. last year. The purchase was reported over the weekend by The Wall Street Journal, which said Apple Inc. paid $20 million for the Silicon Valley company. Apple confirmed the purchase Monday but did not say how much it paid or why it wanted WiFiSLAM. WiFiSLAM has shut down its website and closed its YouTube account.Traditional methods of locating cellphones include GPS and sensing of nearby cell towers. Neither of these approaches work well indoors. Retail chains are interested in helping shoppers find things in their stores, and apps that could help them navigate the aisles could be valuable. ABI Research estimates that the market for "indoor retail location" aids will be worth $5 billion in 2018.

Elmer-Dewitt, who has been following Apple as a media correspondent since 1982, said that out of all the analysts that CNNMoney polled, even the most bullish feel that Apple will post its first numbers since 2003 where the growth for the past quarter was lower than the same quarter of the year prior. The general consensus was that Apple’s earnings per share, which for the second quarter of 2012 sat at $12.30, will slip to $10.18, according to a poll conducted by Thomson Financial. The analysts contacted by Elmer-Dewitt and CNNMoney were slightly more pessimistic, with an average EPS estimate of $9.85. In a positive light, Elmer-Dewitt’s article on CNNMoney says that investors have already taken the negative growth into account for the company’s stock, and as a result, smart money injections — investments from those who are considered to be well experienced and well informed — have been rising over the last three weeks…

which makes mapping applications for smart phones.
Apple confirmed the acquisition, but declined to give details. The news was earlier reported by The Wall Street Journal, which quoted a person familiar with the matter as saying that Apple paid around $20 million for the company. "Apple acquires smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans," an Apple spokesman told Reuters. WiFiSlam develops technology that provides indoor tracking and similar services. Big tech companies such as Apple and Google have been racing to provide more and better map applications for users. Google's application, Google Maps, is widely accessed on Google's Android platform and rival Apple's rival iOS platform.

Stores across the country are ditching the old-fashioned, clunky machines and having salespeople — and even shoppers themselves — ring up sales on smartphones and tablet computers. Barneys New York, a luxury retailer, this year plans to use iPads or iPod Touch devices for credit and debit card purchases in seven of its nearly two dozen regular-price stores. Urban Outfitters, a teen clothing chain, ordered its last traditional register last fall and plans to go completely mobile one day. And Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, is testing a "Scan & Go" app that lets customers scan their items as they shop. "The traditional cash register is heading toward obsolescence," said Danielle Vitale, chief operating officer of Barneys New York.
That the cash register is getting the boot is no surprise. The writing has been on the wall for a long time for the iconic machine, which was created in the late 1800s. The register was essential in nearly every retail location by the early 1900s, but it now seems outdated in a world in which smartphones and tablets increasingly are replacing everything from books to ATMs to cameras. Stores like smartphones and tablets because they take up less floor space than registers and free up cashiers to help customers instead of being tethered to one spot. They also are cheaper: For instance, Apple Inc.'s iPads with accessories like credit card readers can cost a store $1,500, compared with $4,000 for a register. And Americans increasingly want the same speedy service in physical stores that they get from shopping online. "Consumers want the retailer to bring the register to them," said Lori Schafer, executive adviser at SAS Institute Inc., which creates software for major retailers.

Analyst Ken Hui at Jefferies, who maintains a Hold on the shares, in a note late Thursday said that Foxconn will be providing the plastic case for a less expensive iPhone model that he expects to start production in June. The comment came after results from Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn Thursday morning. Hui also remarked that Jabil Circuit, which Wednesday night posted disappointing quarterly results, will be another casing provider, and that the Foxconn parent Hon Hai is “ramping multiple new iPhone models.”

CNBC’s Seema Mody on the channel noted it was the first time the stock had broken its 50-day moving average since October 29th. A close above the average today would be the first time since October 4th. The stock got an endorsement this morning from RBC Capital’s Amit Daryanani, who expects the much-rumored “iPhone 5S” to arrive in June or July, and a lower-priced iPhone, below $400 wholesale, sometime in the June quarter or “early Q3.” Writes Daryanani, who has an Outperform rating on the stock, and a $600 price target, the 1.37 billion units of smartphones that may be sold worldwide come 2012 (up from 700 million last year), will be 75% from emerging markets, up from perhaps 65% last year, citing data from Strategy Analytics. Apple can quickly gain share in the low-end smartphone market, he thinks, with what he expects will be an iPhone with a plastic shell and a lower-res display.

12:24 PM Another day, another low-cost iPhone (AAPL +1.3%) report. RBC's Amit Daryanani says his checks indicate a cheaper iPhone with a plastic case and a 4" non-retina display is on the way. He think it will arrive in the June/July timeframe, sell for less than $400, and (after modeling various scenarios in a spreadsheet) add $22B in sales and $5 in EPS to Apple's 2014 results. For those keeping score, RBC, Jefferies, KGI Securities, Sterne Agee, and Goldman have all predicted a cheaper iPhone will arrive, but the details they provide vary plenty.