Apple’s iPhone sales came into question Wednesday (Jan. 23) after JPMorgan warned in a research report that growth in sales of high-end smartphones has hit a plateau. The tech company is likely reducing production of its latest and greatest edition, too: the iPhone X.
According to a CNBC report citing the JPMorgan research, Narci Chang, senior analyst at JPMorgan Chase, said manufacturing of the iPhone X could be down 50 percent on a sequential basis.
Chang isn’t the only one on Wall Street to express concerns about iPhone X demand. Earlier this week, securities brokerage company KGI Securities predicted Apple would discontinue the first version of the iPhone X when the second generation of the high-end smartphone rolls out later in 2018. KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said in a research report, covered by MacRumors, that if Apple kept the current iPhone X in its lineup when it launches the second generation, but lowered the price, it could hurt sales of the newer device.
The analyst expects Apple to roll out a 6.1-inch iPhone with Face ID and an LCD display in the second half of this year. That device is predicted to sell for either $650 or $750 in the U.S., much lower than the $999 starting price for the iPhone X. In the same memo, Kuo reduced his lifetime sales forecast for the new iPhone X from 80 million to 62 million phones.
On the more bullish front, CNBC pointed to research firm Canalys, which estimates Apple sold 29 million iPhone X units in the fourth quarter and that the iPhone X was the most shipped smartphone during the holiday shopping season. How the iPhone X fared during the holiday season and the current quarter is anyone’s guess, because Apple no longer provides guidance on shipments.
A company spokesperson did not immediately respond to CNBC’s queries about the JPMorgan research report.
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