Second analyst suspects iPod nano delays
Shares of Apple Computer continued to trade near 6-month lows on Friday after a second Wall Street analyst said the company's redesigned iPod nano digital music player may face delays of up to two months.
"Our checks indicate this pricing decline was induced by a 2-month pushout in iPod nano-related orders, from June to August," Gerra said. "This suggests Apple's upcoming 6GB - 8GB nano will be on the shelves in November rather than September."
The analyst also said it's his belief that second quarter sales for a leading NAND flash supplier came in below target, suggesting an inventory dump and continued pricing pressures will take place over the next month.
Gerra's comments come on the heels of a similar report, released late last week by Shaw Wu, an analyst with American Technology Research. In his report, Wu also said the new nano could be facing a multi-month setback.
The analyst attributed the delay to Apple's change of SoC (system-on-a-chip) suppliers, in which it elected to use chips from Samsung rather than long-time iPod component supplier PortalPlayer.
However, Wu believes the new nano will arrive in 4GB and 8GB models, rather than 6GB and 8GB configurations.
"We believe the price points will remain the same at $199 and $249, but that storage capacities will be doubled to 4GB and 8GB, up from 2GB and 4GB," he told his clients.
For its part, AppleInsider has been unable to positively confirm that the new nano will miss its target introduction of September, despite reported challenges faced by Samsung in adapting its SoC to meet Apple's iPod nano needs.
12 Comments
... but if Wu is wrong, you'll never hear that admission, will you?
These analysts seem to think Apple wont bring out its Christmas iPod's until December.
I understand worries about the delays in the iPod but I would be very surprised if we don't see not only a Mac Pro, but also some totally new product that no one was thinking about. Also the video iPod might get an upgrade. We'll have to wait and see but I don't think this is reason to sell a stock, rumors about a product that wasn't announced to be released, being delayed. I don't see how it can be bad if a product that wasn't announced for a release date or anything like that, is rumored to be delayed. Good time to buy stock now, before the next products are released. That's just my worthless opinion.
I agree. Great time to pickup AAPL. I just used all my free cash to pick it up. Hopefully I will be able to flip it in 6 months for a nice profit (I can easily see AAPL at 80 by then).
I agree. Great time to pickup AAPL. I just used all my free cash to pick it up. Hopefully I will be able to flip it in 6 months for a nice profit (I can easily see AAPL at 80 by then).
Personally I would hold it for more than 6 months, if you sell it say November 2007 you might get treble what you just paid for it now. Honestly it seems a no brainer, if you have extra money, buy apple stock. You have been advised.