
Demand for Apple’s upcoming iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C appear to be healthy according to a new survey, suggesting that investor concerns over device preorders may be unfounded. The latest AlphaWise data from Morgan Stanley tracking Web search trends found that demand for the iPhone saw an unhealthy uptick following last week’s announcement of the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C. The data tracked key markets where the iPhones are currently set to launch including the US, UK, Germany, France, China and Japan.
Analyst Katy Huberty mentioned the survey data suggested Apple may ship 34.5 million iPhone units in the current September quarter, which will conclude less than two weeks after both the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C become available. This would suggest a 15% quarter over quarter increase in iPhone shipments for the September timeframe, which would be in line with the 16% quarter over quarter increase that Apple saw in the same period in 2012. To Huberty, this represents “healthy demand” for Apple’s latest iPhones.
Shares of Apple fell earlier in the week when Apple declined to announce any presale figures for the iPhone 5C. For the last few years, Apple touted record pre-orders for its latest iPhone but 2013 marks the first time Apple is releasing two distinct new iPhone models with pre-orders being made available only for the second-tier iPhone 5C. As a result, Huberty said investor concern over the lack of an announcement may be “overblown.” She continued by noting that Wall Street consensus calls for Apple to have shipped around 31 million iPhones in the September quarter, a figure less than the latest survey data suggests the company will actually end up shipping. Huberty mentioned the following in a note to investors:
We don't view preorders in 2013 as comparable to past years given the higher-end iPhone 5s, which is the more likely choice for early adopters, isn't available for pre-order.
Customers will be able to get their hands on both the iPhone 5C and the iPhone 5S this Friday, when Apple’s retail stores open at 8:00 AM local time. Evidence is pointing towards the iPhone 5S being in short supply for the launch weekend, potentially due to component constraints but we’ll have to wait and see.
Source: Morgan Stanley Research via AppleInsider
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