14 DAY TRIAL // Sales of new iPhones aren’t going too well, and while Apple remains tight-lipped on this, information coming from various sources close to the matter indicates that the company has already reduced orders at its suppliers as it expects a further drop.
Now a survey conducted by UBS reveals that the intent to purchase a new iPhone has also declined after the release of the 2018 generation to a five-year low.
The last time the purchase intent was so low was after the launch of iPhone 6s, analysts explain.
UBS claims only 18 percent of the Americans who participated in the survey said they plan to buy a new iPhone in the next 12 months, a decrease from no less than 21 percent the year before. On the other hand, the figure is closer to the 17 percent score that it was achieved in October 2015.
Chinese users also less interested in new iPhones
Things are even worse in China where the decline is more significant. Just 23 percent of the local users said they are looking at the iPhone as their next smartphone, down from 29 percent in 2017.
UBS has set a new price target of $210 for Apple shares, a significant decrease from the original estimate of $225 per share.
"Investor expectations for this iPhone cycle are muted. Consensus estimate for iPhones in 2019 is for roughly 2 percent unit decline and about 1 percent revenue growth," UBS analyst Timothy Arcuri was quoted as saying by CNBC.
Apple has a hard time boosting demand for the 2018 iPhone lineup, and it’s believed that the high price of the new devices are the main reason customers delay their purchase. iPhone XR is available in the United States starting from $749, while the iPhone XS costs $999. The top-of-the-range iPhone XS Max can be purchased for no less than $1,449.