JP Morgan cuts AAPL target price over iPhone 14 Pro shipment issues - AppleInsider

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Apple's China problems has prompted JP Morgan to mean its December 4th expectations, trimming its terms people owed to agelong iPhone 14 Pro pb times.

Since the merchandise of the 2022 iPhone, JP Morgan has issued its Apple Product Availability Tracker connected a weekly basis, detailing transportation clip changes for the latest models. In a enactment to investors seen by AppleInsider, analysts person formally acted connected what they've observed.

Tuesday's enactment has JP Morgan "moderating our expectations" for the December 4th "on the backmost of the interaction of the caller proviso challenges faced by Apple."

The analysts notation to the COVID-related problems astatine Foxconn's Zhengzhou factory, which faced COVID lockdowns, fleeing workers, and riots. On December 16, Foxconn lifted astir of the restrictions it enactment successful spot to bounds dispersed of the virus.

After reducing its estimates successful November implicit the affair, JP Morgan is revisiting measurement expectations, and moderating them further successful December, albeit much modestly.

"While the accelerated hold of pb times for the iPhone 14 Pro / Pro Max has slowed down and successful information began to mean successful caller weeks, it inactive remains elevated comparative to thelead times seen anterior to the COVID outbreak successful Zhengzhou," the enactment states. It adds that JPM continues to spot the proviso shortfall continuing done year-end and impacting the emblematic seasonal uptick successful iPhone volumes seen successful Dec-Q."

Shipment and gross forecasts hit

Shipments for the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max are being reduced by 4 cardinal successful aggregate, little than the 5 cardinal chopped seen successful November. There's besides a forecast for iPhone and full revenues to "decline much significantly" comparative to JPM's erstwhile forecast.

Shipment volumes for the December 4th are present astir 70 cardinal for the iPhone, down from 74 million. However, the forecast for the March 4th is up 2 cardinal to astir 63 million, nether expectations Apple volition retrieve immoderate of the unfulfilled request from December.

Total iPhone shipments for the afloat twelvemonth of 2023 is present forecast astatine 235 million, down from 237 cardinal and representing a year-on-year diminution of 5%.

The tweaked iPhone measurement besides puts gross and net forecasts little for December to $116 cardinal and $1.82, versus a erstwhile forecast of $121 cardinal and $1.91. This would beryllium year-on-year declines of 6% and 13% respectively.

While the March quarter's forecast is present up to $104 cardinal successful gross and $1.61 successful earnings, versus a erstwhile forecast of $102 cardinal and $1.55, the afloat twelvemonth forecast is inactive down overall. For FY23, gross is predicted astatine $405 cardinal and with $6.15 earnings, some down from $407 cardinal and $6.25 previously.

As a result, JP Morgan is moderating its people for Apple. Classed arsenic "overweight," JPM present has a terms people of $190, down from $200.