Two more investor analyst institutions have upgrade their targets for Apple’s bottom line, as demand for iPhone 7 continues to surprise industry watchers and exceed investor expectations from earlier in the year.
Nomura Securities are predicting AAPL Apple stock will soon hit a new all-time high of $135 per share; it’s previous record was $134 in April 2015. They said that iPhone 7 demand is higher than they thought and believe the supply chain is readying increases in the production schedule.
RBC Capital is slightly less enthused, but still reporting a very positive outlook for Apple. Drawing from a survey of 6000 people, they estimate that more people will be buying the 5.5 inch model, increasing from a 38% share of total sales with iPhone 6s to 46% for iPhone 7 series. The increased attention on the bigger models is likely driven by the dual-camera.
RBC also says that the mid-tier iPhone storage SKU continues to be attractive despite Apple doubling capacities. Therefore, they believe Apple will continue to benefit from the better margins of the 128 GB phone which is sold at a $100 premium over the $649 base model.
RBC also indicate better demand for Apple Watch (intent to buy up to 17% from 13% YOY). They have set an AAPL price target of $125. AAPL closed trading yesterday at $113.55. The stock has risen 10% in the last two weeks, when the iPhone 7 first became available to pre-order.
