iPhone 16 changes will aid Qualcomm, Broadcom, others: KeyBanc

Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) unveiling of the new iPhone 16 smartphone line has several implications for the semiconductor industry — both good and bad — investment firm KeyBanc Capital Markets said on Tuesday.

On the positive side, Cirrus Logic (NASDAQ:CRUS), Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) and Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) are likely to benefit for various reasons, analyst John Vinh said. Cirrus should benefit as the iPhone 16 Pro is upgraded to a folding lens designs (tetraprism), while the new Camera Control changes likely have a haptic driver, Vinh explained.

Additionally, both the iPhone 16 Pro, Pro Max and iPhone 16 Plus have been upgraded to have new ultra-wide cameras, which likely utilizes the latest generation camera controllers and is a plus for Cirrus Logic, Vinh posited.

There are positive implications for Broadcom, as all the new iPhone 16 models are equipped with an upgrade to Wi-Fi 7.

Other beneficiaries from the new iPhones include Analog Devices (ADI), given that the Camera Control features a force sensor and Qualcomm, as the iPhone 16 likely has an increase in radio frequency content, Vinh said.

Negative and neutral

Conversely, there are also negative implications for the semiconductor industry, notably Skyworks Solutions (SWKS), which should be impacted by the loss of radio frequency content to Qualcomm, Vinh said.

The implications for Qorvo (QRVO) are more neutral in scope. There was an expectation that Qorvo was able to increase its content in the phones, though there are no discernible areas where an increase in content was highlighted, Vinh said.