Goldman Sachs Lowers iPhone Sales Estimates for 2018

Goldman Sachs has lowered its iPhone sales estimates for the first two quarters of 2018.

According to a new investor note from Goldman Sachs (via CNBC), the firm is now modeling Apple’s total iPhone sales for the quarter ending March 31 at 53 million units, down from a prior estimate of 54.7 million units.

For the second calendar quarter, Goldman Sachs‘ iPhone sales estimate was slashed from 43.5 million to 40.3 million units.

“iPhone demand expectations for March and June are already weak but we believe that early CQ1 (calendar first quarter) demand indications suggest even lower actual numbers than consensus is modeling,” Goldman Sachs said in a note late Tuesday.

The brokerage firm also lowered its iPhone shipment forecast for this fiscal year, which ends in September, as well as the 2019 fiscal year, and dropped its price target to $159 from $161.

According to the analysts, demand for iPhones was “already weak,” but demand indications imply Apple’s sales figures for the two quarters will come in lower than what the Street is expecting. Accordingly, Apple will need to address a “material channel inventory” ahead of the launch of new products in the fall season.

As a result of its reduction in iPhone shipments, Goldman Sachs also reduced its revenue forecasts for this fiscal year ending September by 2.4 percent to $256.6 billion. For the 2019 fiscal year, Goldman cut its revenue forecast by 2.7 percent to $272.5 billion.

P.S. - Like our news? Support the site with a coffee/beer. Or shop with our Amazon link. We use affiliate links when possible--thank you for supporting independent media.