Ahead of today’s earnings report by Apple, analysts are weighing-in on what we could expect to hear from the Cupertino, Calif. electronics powerhouse. Mac sales were up 25 percent in the March quarter, according to one analyst.
Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster estimated Apple sold between 2.8 and 2.9 million Macs during the second quarter, based on the 25 percent figure from retail watcher NPD. Although the sales number was close to Wall Street’s consensus of a 22 percent jump in Mac sales (2.7 million) for the March quarter, the news sent Apple shares down nearly 2 percent in Monday afternoon trading. The reason: The 25 percent sales jump in March was seen as a sign of slowing down from the 43 percent growth in February.
Munster also predicts iPod sales for the March quarter will be up 3 percent (9 to 10 million globally) compared to the previous year. The lower number is right in line with the Street’s consensus for 9 million iPod sales for the second quarter.
As for iPhone sales, Munster projects 7.5 million iPhones will have sold in the March quarter. He bases that estimate on Apple’s April 8 statement of having sold “over 50 million iPhones to date.” If Apple had sold no more iPhones to date, it would imply 6.9 million iPhones were shipped in March. Munster deemed such an estimate a “conservative case.” On the other hand, assuming Apple sold 51 million iPhones to date would bring handset sales to 7.8 million unit and a more aggressive model. In the end, the analyst takes the middle-ground, projecting Apple will announce 7.5 million iPhones were sold in the second quarter.
Apple will announce its second quarter results after trading closes at 5 p.m. East Coast.
