Apple Analyst Raises IPhone Sales Estimate by 4 Million
January 11, 2012, 10:21 PM ESTBy Heather Perlberg
Jan. 11 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc. probably sold 4 million more iPhones than expected in the last three months of the year because of strong sales of the 4S model, Gene Munster, an analyst at Piper Jaffray Cos. said in a research note.
Munster today raised his estimate to 30 million devices, joining other analysts who have increased their iPhone sales forecasts this month, including Bill Shope at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in New York, and Brian Marshall at ISI Group In San Francisco.
“We believe iPhone 4S has sold better than our previous expectations,” Munster said in a note. Munster has an “overweight” rating on the shares.
He said the next six months will be “favorable” for Cupertino, California-based Apple as investors anticipate the introduction of the iPhone 5, iPad 3, and Apple Television. Munster said he expects the iPhone 5 will have a new body design.
Net sales of the iPhone, the world’s most popular smartphone, and related products and services accounted for 39 percent of fourth-quarter sales and 43 percent of total sales in 2011, according to a company filing.
Apple fell 0.5 percent to $421.07 at 1:32 p.m. New York time. The shares gained 26 percent last year.
The company is scheduled to report fiscal first-quarter earnings Jan. 24.
--Editors: Niamh Ring, Jeffrey Tannenbaum
Heather Perlberg in New York at hperlberg@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tom Giles at tgiles5@bloomberg.net
