Apple Store“Apple seems set to exceed sales expectations in its current financial quarter – but we won’t find out by how much until 25 April, when the company reveals its Q2 results,” Jonny Evans reports for Macworld UK.

Evans reports, “In keeping with the industry, Apple’s second financial quarter is traditionally less prosperous than the other three quarters of its financial year.”

“Pacific Crest analyst Andy Hargreaves made a few observations regarding recent NPD sales tracker data, pointing out that Mac sales seem to be exceeding his estimates for the quarter,” Evans reports.

“The analyst also observed that Apple’s customers are choosing the better-featured (and more expensive) Mac configurations, and predicts 1.5 million Mac sales in the current quarter. Mac sales growth continues to exceed the rate of PC sales growth,” Evans reports. “iPod sales seem set to meet 10.5 million units the analyst said, noting Apple as ‘outperform’ and offering a target stock price of $130 per share.”

Full article here.

Aidan Malley reports for AppleInsider, “In a research note issued to investors, Morgan Stanley analyst Kathryn Huberty advised readers that Apple was the healthiest PC vendor during the first two months of the new year… While virtually every vendor of Windows PCs depended on the Vista-related sales surge in February to make up for a lackluster first month, Apple continued its march forward seemingly untouched by Vista’s presence: the number of Macs shipped to the same business and retail buyers grew by 71 percent year-over-year in January and a nearly identical 72 percent in February.”

“Apple also took an 8 percent share of this particular market, compared to 6 percent a year ago — boding especially well for the still modestly sized Mac maker in the face of resurgent competition. Some assumed the company would lose ground to Vista as it had with prior Windows updates,” Malley reports.

Malley reports, “Apple [iPod] showed no signs of letting go of its by now well-entrenched marketshare, holding over 73 percent of the music player sales through the early part of the year and growing 30 percent between the same two months in 2006 and 2007. Would-be challengers had to largely be content with taking each other’s business, the report noted.”

Full article here.

Related article:
NPD data shows Mac sales growing 5x market growth rate in February – March 29, 2007