Loup Ventures Revisits 2020 Tech Predictions: Apple As The FAANG Leader, Tesla Delivery Beats And More

The tech sector is mounting a strong recovery after the COVID-19-induced weakness seen in early-to-mid March. With most stocks trading at or near record highs, Loup Ventures revisited the 2020 predictions it made at the start of the year.

Apple To Catch Up Other With Other FAANG Stocks? Apple Inc. AAPL, though currently underperforming Amazon and Netflix, is on track to end 2020 as the best FAANG stock, Loup Ventures managing partner Gene Munster said in a post. 

The optimism is based on the belief the company will benefit this year from easy iPhone comparables, continued Apple Watch growth, the launch of five new iPhone models in 2020 and investor anticipation of 5G, Munster said.

Tesla To Surpass Delivery Targets? Munster, who had predicted that Tesla Inc TSLA would exceed the original Street delivery estimate of 463,000 at the start of the year, remains optimistic the EV maker will outperform.

Having delivered a combined 179,000 vehicles in the first half, the analyst-turned-venture capitalist said the company has to sell another 284,000 vehicles in the second half to hit the number, which would mean deliveries of 142,000 per quarter.

"We believe this is possible given the ramp in China Gigafactory production, along with growing demand for Model 3 and Model Y," he said. 

Direct IPO Listings Gain Acceptance? Loup Ventures' Doug Clinton, who said he expected at least three direct listings this year as the mode gains wide acceptance, said no direct tech listings have occurred yet. Clinton noted recent reports suggesting Coinbase and Palantir are exploring direct listings.

See also: Apple Gets Another Price Target Hike, Analyst Predicts Strong Services Trends

Amazon Adding 20 Go Stores? Against expectations of Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN adding 30 Amazon Go Stores, the e-commerce giant has taken it slow, said Loup's Andrew Murphy.

Since a large format concept is the end goal for Amazon's automated retail initiative, Murphy  said he expects Go Grocery store openings to continue.

Netflix To Thrive Despite Competition? Munster had expected Netflix Inc NFLX to meet the Street's initial net paid adds estimate of 26.6 million.

With the streaming giant reporting net paid adds of a staggering 15.8 million in the March quarter and appearing on track to beat its guidance of 7.5 million for the June quarter, Munster said the company is approaching the Street's initial full-year guidance by midyear.

Apple, Facebook Unlikely to Launch AR Glasses? As Loup Ventures expected, Apple and Facebook, Inc. FB have yet to hint at the launch of AR glasses this year, Munster said.

The product isn't likely to be unveiled until 2021 and shipped until 2022 at the earliest, he said. 

Oculus On Track to Release New Quest Hardware? As predicted at the start of the year, Munster said he continues to believe the new Quest hardware will be released by the end of this year.

In the last six months, Facebook has discontinued some of its other VR models to focus on Quest, according to Loup Ventures. 

Related Links: Munster Says Under-The-Radar Apple TV+ Will Contribute 20% Of Cupertino's Net Income Growth

Photo courtesy of Apple.