Is Apple headed for a post-earnings bounce?

Apple has become the odd one out of the Magnificent 7, in an AI-heavy market where the company has somewhat infamously bungled its AI rollout. But some see opportunity at the end of the crisis.

Jeff Jacobson, head of derivatives strategy at 22V Research, thinks the time is ripe to bet on a rebound in the stock, which retail traders have been using as a source of funds for other opportunities in tech.

Ahead of the iPhone maker’s earnings report on Thursday, Jacobson recommends a call spread trade in Apple that offers exposure to a long-lived positive reaction to the company’s quarterly results and commentary.

Apple is aiming to beef up its AI presence in 2026 after a host of management changes late last year, and is reportedly exploring the possibility of a wearable AI pin.

The company seemingly has a solid base from which to innovate, with its now world-leading smartphone market share and its Services business supported by the 850 million weekly App Store users it counted at the end of 2025.

Jacob’s proposed trade was (1) buy Apple calls with a strike price of $262.50 that expire on February 20, and then (2) sell the same amount of Apple calls with a strike price of $285 and the same expiry. When Jacobson initially made this recommendation in an email to clients, the trade could be put on for about $3.95; as of Monday’s close, that had risen to about $4.27.

The Takeaway

“What I particularly like about the setup for AAPL into earnings this quarter is the sharp pullback in the stock on both an absolute and relative basis heading into the report later this week,” he wrote. “Not only did we see a nearly 16% decline from the December (all-time) highs but shares also underperformed the market (SPX) by over 14% over that time. Now that the stock has already moved lower and underperformed, perhaps we can see a meaningful rebound once they report earnings?”