Wells Fargo Says iPhone 7 To Boost Apple Inc. Growth

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With all of the focus on the possible features that Apple Inc. will pack into the iPhone 7, Wells Fargo has released a note predicting the effect that the new smartphone will have on the company’s financial figures.

Wells Fargo Says iPhone 7 To Boost Apple Inc. Growth

Consumers are understandably concerned about whether the iPhone 7 will feature a dual-camera system or get rid of the 3.5mm headphone jack, but Apple investors want to know about how the new smartphone will impact their investment. To that end Wells Fargo analyst Maynard Um sent a note to investors this week.

Wells Fargo analyst more optimistic than Wall Street average

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is set to release its earnings report today, and it will reveal the first ever year-on-year decline in iPhone sales. Analysts are hoping that the launch of the iPhone 7, which is predicted for September this year, will be able to stimulate growth once more.

Wells Fargo analyst Um is one figure that believes the new smartphone will see Apple return to growth in the December quarter. Apple has openly admitted that iPhone sales would decline in the March quarter.

Um believes that Apple could sell around 82.2 million iPhone handsets over the holiday period. This projection is higher than market expectations, says Um, who believes that Wall Street analysts are being too pessimistic about the future of the company.

Apple earnings report scheduled for later today

He says that the potential growth in the aftermath of the iPhone 7 launch has not been priced into Apple shares. Wall Street is predicting $52 billion in sales and earnings per share of $2.00 for the March quarter, with 50 million iPhones sold compared to 61 million in the same time period last year.

Um has predicted that Apple will have sold $51.7 billion on earnings per share of $2.01.

Wall Street is predicting $47.4 billion in sales and $1.76 EPS for the third quarter. This compares to $45.2 billion and $1.64 EPS predicted by Um and Wells Fargo.

At the end of trading today Apple will release its first quarter results and provide guidance for the June quarter. There will be a conference call at 5 PM Eastern, 2 PM Pacific with the company’s executive team.

Wells Fargo kept its “outperform” rating for Apple stock and set a valuation range of $120-130.

Technological advances could drive sales of iPhone 7

The Apple iPhone 7 is expected to bring a raft of improvements over its predecessor, the iPhone 6s. The new smartphone is widely slated for release in September this year.

Excitement is growing over a number of innovations, including a rumored dual-camera system that could bring dramatic improvements in performance in low light. Another persistent rumor involves the possible removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack, which would make the introduction of wireless headphones a necessity.

Less sexy improvements such as better battery life have also been rumored. The existing iPhone 6s has come in for criticism due to its mediocre battery life, and users complain that they have to charge the smartphone at every opportunity to avoid running out of juice.

According to other rumors the new Apple smartphone could also use a smaller version of the screen that was recently introduced on the iPad Pro. The LCD unit has a number of features that have made critics purr, and many people believe that it is the best screen to be found on any phone or tablet today.

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