Apple suppliers report record July sales as new iPhone launch approaches
Apple suppliers report that they enjoyed their best July yet in terms of sales. The report leads many analysts to predict that Apple could have their biggest product launches in history later on this year.
Brian White, from Topeka Capital Markets, explained preliminary July sales from the firm’s ‘Apple Monitor’ proprietary increased by estimated 14% month-over-month, about two times the average increase from 8.5% we’ve seen from the last seven years.
White continued:
“This July represents the strongest month-over-month sales growth of any July we have on record over the past eight years for the Apple Monitor. [It] was well above the 7% growth experienced last July, supporting our view of an earlier launch of the iPhone 5 versus the iPhone 4S last October.”
Many expect the iPhone 5 (my guess is the new iPhone will simply be called “iPhone) and iPad Mini will launch September 12, but nothing has been confirmed. It’s also been rumored that Apple will introduce a television set sometime in the near future, but that seems like a long shot.
White also believes Apple’s stock is gearing up for a huge increase that could propel them into the $1,111 price target sometime next year.
It seems like a foregone conclusion that the new iPhone release is weeks away, less so that an iPad Mini will be launched, and even less of a certainty that Apple will release a television set. For now, I think the main goal of the company is gear up for the launch of the next iPhone, as well as continually making improvements to iOS 6.