Mobile payments are a natural outgrowth for mobile devices and a potentially lucrative market. After all, the convenience of being able to pay for things right from your mobile phone makes sense, and mobile device makers relish the chance to take a cut of all those payments for themselves. Tech giant Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) may be able to make new progress on that front, but it didn’t help shares much, which are down modestly in the closing minutes of Friday’s trading.
Apple’s advances in near-field communications (NFC) payment technology could be available for other companies to use as soon as May, assuming all goes as hoped with European regulators. Back in January, Apple offered up a planned 10-year commitment to allow other mobile wallet systems to access Apple’s own NFC payment chip.
The original agreement has been somewhat modified since but the field should be a lot more open this way. There was no shortage of objection to the old way, where Apple devices ran Apple software for Apple users to pay with. This was considered a “closed ecosystem” in which Apple ran the show.
Gamers to Have Access to Retro Games
Meanwhile, an odd development is taking place for iOS and some of its Android counterparts. At least two new emulators are coming to devices soon. The Delta emulator—which is unique in that it’s won official approval from Nintendo itself—will give gamers access to classic titles from the eight-bit Nintendo Entertainment System up to the Nintendo 64, as well as hand-helds from Game Boy to the Nintendo DS.
The Provenance system will also open up the field, handling titles from Nintendo, Sega Genesis, the original PlayStation, the Atari 2600, and more. This app won’t be available just yet, and it will be interesting to see if Nintendo raises an objection to the part it will have with this app, but for retro gamers, it’s going to be a big few months ahead.
Is Apple a Buy, Hold, or Sell?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on AAPL stock based on 16 Buys, 10 Holds, and two Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 0.41% loss in its share price over the past year, the average AAPL price target of $200.21 per share implies 21.33% upside potential.
Is AAPL the Right Stock to Buy for Passive Income?
Before you hurry to invest in AAPL, think about the following:
TipRanks’ team has built a Smart Dividend Stock Portfolio for investors, and Apple is not included. Our portfolio highlights companies that have been hand-picked for their potential to deliver significant passive income for years to come.
