Apple slips as UBS cuts iPhone build estimates, citing China disruptions
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Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares slipped fractionally in premarket trading on Thursday as UBS lowered its iPhone build forecast for the fourth-quarter, citing the supply disruptions out of China and "softer demand" for the low-end models of the iPhone 14 lineup.
Analyst David Vogt now expects fourth-quarter iPhone builds to be 74M units, 15% lower than previously forecast, with the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max making up 62% of the total iPhone 14 mix.
"We estimate the disruption at the Zhengzhou plant could lead to a 7-10m unit shortfall in Q422, depending on the speed of production recovery at Hon Hai," Vogt wrote in a note to clients.
In total, Vogt projected 2022 iPhone build will be 231M units, flat year-over-year.
The analyst also added estimates for the iPhone build in the first-quarter at 53M units, down 29% sequentially and 10% year-over-year.
A widely watched analyst said earlier this week that Apple's (AAPL) iPhone 14 Pro shipments could be up to 20M units less than expected because of China-related supply chain disruptions.