Apple Wanderlust Event Unveils New iPhone and Apple Watch, But Leaves Investors Cold

Key takeaways

• Apple’s Wanderlust event revealed the new iPhone 15, upgraded AirPods and a new Apple Watch
• Tim Cook also confirmed the Vision Pro would be shipping out early next year
• Apple’s share price fell before, during and after the launch

The much-anticipated annual Apple launch, known as the Wanderlust event this year, took place yesterday and revealed precisely what everyone was expecting: a shiny new iPhone, Apple Watch and upgraded AirPods.

Perhaps it’s because the Apple event went almost exactly as planned that investors shrugged at the lack of a ‘wow’ factor. Apple stock was down before and after the event, which is pretty rare for the Big Tech titan after a big launch event like this. We’ve got the latest on what went down at the Apple launch and why investors were less than thrilled.

What happened at the Apple Wanderlust event?

Apple’s yearly launch event took place yesterday at the Apple campus in California, unveiling a new set of iPhone 15 phones. The one single surprise from the event was that the pricing is staying the same on the new models, except for the top-line iPhone 15 Pro, which will retail for $100 more.

Featuring a new titanium design, an upgraded A17 processing chip and the controversial (in Apple’s eyes) move to a USB-C charging point, the announcement was, well, bang on what everyone predicted from Apple.

As for other announcements, Apple also unveiled a new Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Series 9, complete with an 18-hour battery life, and updated AirPods, which will also feature the new USB-C charging point.

The only truly exciting update was that Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed that the Vision Pro headset is “on track to ship early next year” and would retail for a whopping $3,499.

How did Wall Street react?

It’s safe to say that investors aren’t convinced Apple can deliver strong iPhone sales this quarter, and the Wanderlust event did little to dissuade them from that view.

Before the event, Apple stock had already fallen by 1.6% in Tuesday’s morning trading ahead of the 1 pm ET launch, with the stock sliding as much as 2.5% after Apple confirmed two of the three newly unveiled models were maintaining their prices.

Afterwards, Apple shares closed down 1.7% at a price of $176.30. Wednesday morning has seen Apple’s stock move downward a further 0.6%. Apple’s share price has still performed well throughout the year, gaining 40% since the start of 2023.

The stock has been falling recently due to the Chinese government’s proposed ban on iPhones and other foreign phone brands from being used as work phones. It’s also worth noting that Apple expected revenue to decline in the third quarter despite the iPhone launch, which doesn’t keep Wall Street optimistic.

The bottom line

Apple has been holding an annual event launch for 15 years now, and it’s more than tough to keep products feeling fresh and new for that long.

Perhaps we’ve simply reached peak iPhone as a society — so it’s no wonder investors are left feeling uneasy about Apple’s share price prospects, at least in the short term.