Lehman Boosts Price Target on Apple (AAPL) to $234

Lehman Brothers raises their price target on Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL ) from $202 to $234 and raised their iPhone sales estimates. The firm said the lower price for the 3G iPhone may boost revenue.

July 14, 2008 8:30 AM EDT

CUPERTINO, Calif., July 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apple(R) today announced it sold its one millionth iPhone(TM) 3G on Sunday, just three days after its launch on Friday, July 11. iPhone 3G is now available in 21 countries -- Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK and the US -- and will go on sale in France on July 17.

"iPhone 3G had a stunning opening weekend," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "It took 74 days to sell the first one million original iPhones, so the new iPhone 3G is clearly off to a great start around the world."

The new iPhone 3G combines all the revolutionary features of iPhone plus 3G networking that is twice as fast*, built-in GPS for expanded location-based mobile services, and iPhone 2.0 software which includes support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync and runs over 800 third party applications available through the new App Store. In the US, the new iPhone 3G is priced at just $199 for the 8GB model, and $299 for the 16GB model**.

*Based on 3G and EDGE testing. Actual speeds vary by site conditions.

**Requires new two-year AT&T rate plan for qualified customers, sold separately.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone.

(C) 2008 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, Mac, Mac OS, Macintosh and iPhone are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

SOURCE Apple

July 14, 2008 8:30 AM EDT

CUPERTINO, Calif., July 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apple(R) today announced that iPhone(TM) and iPod(R) touch users have already downloaded more than 10 million applications from its groundbreaking new App Store since its launch late last week. Developers have created a wide array of innovative mobile applications ranging from games to location-based social networking to medical applications to enterprise productivity tools. Users can wirelessly download applications directly onto their iPhone or iPod touch* and start using them immediately. More than 800 native applications are now available on the App Store, with more than 200 offered for free and more than 90 percent priced at less than $10.

"The App Store is a grand slam, with a staggering 10 million applications downloaded in just three days," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "Developers have created some extraordinary applications, and the App Store can wirelessly deliver them to every iPhone and iPod touch user instantly."

Many of these amazing new applications take advantage of iPhone's large display, Multi-Touch(TM) user interface, fast hardware-accelerated 3D graphics, built-in accelerometer and location-based technology to bring far more powerful applications to the mobile arena than ever before.

The App Store on iPhone works over cellular networks and Wi-Fi, which means it is accessible from just about anywhere, so users can purchase and download applications wirelessly and start using them instantly. Applications are free or charged to the user's iTunes(R) account and the App Store notifies the user when updates are available for their apps. The App Store is also available in iTunes ( http://www.itunes.com ) running on a Mac(R) or PC, which syncs applications to the iPhone or iPod touch using a USB cable.

*Requires downloading software update sold separately for $9.95.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone.

(C) 2008 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, Mac, Mac OS, Macintosh, iPhone, iPod, Multi-Touch and iTunes are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

SOURCE Apple

July 14, 2008 8:37 AM EDT

Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL ) announced that iPhone(TM) and iPod(R) touch users have already downloaded more than 10 million applications from its groundbreaking new App Store since its launch late last week. Developers have created a wide array of innovative mobile applications ranging from games to location-based social networking to medical applications to enterprise productivity tools. Users can wirelessly download applications directly onto their iPhone or iPod touch* and start using them immediately. More than 800 native applications are now available on the App Store, with more than 200 offered for free and more than 90% priced at less than $10.

"The App Store is a grand slam, with a staggering 10 million applications downloaded in just three days," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "Developers have created some extraordinary applications, and the App Store can wirelessly deliver them to every iPhone and iPod touch user instantly."

Many of these amazing new applications take advantage of iPhone's large display, Multi-Touch(TM) user interface, fast hardware-accelerated 3D graphics, built-in accelerometer and location-based technology to bring far more powerful applications to the mobile arena than ever before.

July 14, 2008 8:42 AM EDT

Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster, along with analysts Michael J. Olson and Andrew H. Murphy, attended the launch of Apple’s (NASDAQ: AAPL ) 3G iPhone at stores in New York and Minneapolis to quantify the launch.

They said, "According to rough estimates we believe Apple sold ~380k units worldwide on Fri. and Sat, and a total of ~425k over the entire weekend (Fri., Sat., Sun.). Our estimate of 380k compares to the 270k units Apple sold in the first two days of availability for the original iPhone. The improvement is driven by two key factors, 1) international availability in 21 countries, and 2) a 60% lower entry-level price point. However, the rate at which Apple was able to sell handsets was significantly slower than the previous launch due to the in-store activation process. At the first launch some Apple stores could sell over 1,000 iPhones per hour, compared to this year when we estimate that most Apple stores took ~15 min. to activate each iPhone 3G."

Of the 425k unites sold, they "believe ~225k were sold in the U.S., ~75k were sold in the U.K., and an average of just under ~7k units were sold in each of the remaining 19 countries."

They also believes that Apple will sell 1 million iPhones in 17 days (by 7/28). By comparison, it took 74 days to sell the 1 millionth unit of the first generation iPhone. The analysts reiterate their estimate of 4.1 million iPhone 3Gs sold in the Sep-08 quarter. (NOTE: Apple already announced the sale of 1 million 3G iPhones this morning)

The firm also conducted a survey of 283 people at Apple stores to gauge purchasing patterns. The surveyed showed that "66% purchased the 16GB model, down from 91% that bought the higher capacity option of the original model (8GB)." Also, 38% of the people were upgrading to the 3G from the original iPhone.

Piper Jaffray maintains their Buy rating and $250 price target.