Apple’s Upcoming iPhone 8: Supercycle Home-Run or Over-Anticipated Bust?

iPhone 8

Apple’s (NASDAQ:$AAPL) upcoming iPhone 8 is otherwise coined as a supercycle. The dramatic and highly anticipated unveil is almost certainly happening on the tech giant’s September 12th media showcase.

Reports are speculating that the new device could cost as much as $1,200. Some observers believe that now is the time to reap in Apple profits, which year-to-date, have increased by 40%. In their mind, the belief is “buy the rumour, sell the news.”

In other words, the concern comes from Apple’s entrance into a period of not only stiffer adversary in Samsung (NASDAQ:$SSNLF), but also fast-growing device makers in China. The former released the Galaxy Note 8 with a starting price at $930 — which we know Apple could never sacrifice. And the latter has pressured Apple’s sales in the world’s most-populous country. Even further, analysts believe that the smartphone market has reached peak saturation, meaning there really just aren’t a lot of consumers left who want to own a cell phone and don’t.

The same argument, however, can be made for the following statement: recent weakness in iPhone shipments is the reason to buy APPL stock and expect a supercycle home-run.

On a closer note, analyst Jeffrey Kvall of Nomura securities revealed a very interesting finding:

“AT&T (NASDAQ:$T), the carrier with the highest iOS penetration, saw the weakest absolute upgrade rates and the sharpest year-over-year declines in upgrade rates. T-Mobile (NASDAQ:$TMUS), which has the lowest iOS penetration, saw the strongest year-over-year absolute upgrade rates.”

What does this mean? The correlation between the iOS penetration rate and decline in sales reflect a significant pent-up demand for the new phone. Further, while current decline in unit sales of iPhones may indeed be a result of market saturation, analysts believe that existing iPhone users are simply holding out until the latest model.

The last supercycle Apple saw was the launch of its iPhone 6 three years ago. Is it just us, or does it seem that the anticipation for the iPhone 8 escalates day by day?

Featured Image: twitter

About the author: Jennifer is a University of Western Ontario graduate with a degree in International Business. She strives to excel as a content creator in the digital sphere, working with clients in the Finance and Tech industry to leverage clickable taglines, images, and articles in driving traffic. When not writing, Jennifer enjoys photography, copywriting, and video production.