“Apple’s iPhone X is likely to be discontinued this year if earnings from one of the company’s top suppliers is anything to go by, according to an analyst,” Arjun Kharpal reports for CNBC. “Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, or TSMC, the world’s largest semiconductor foundry company, revised its full-year revenue target to the low end of its forecast. Shares in the company closed 6.3 percent lower on Friday.”
“One of the biggest concerns for Neil Campling, the co-head of the global thematic group focusing on technology at Mirabaud Securities, is the oversupply of chips,” Kharpal reports. “TSMC’s record inventory levels are due to Apple not buying components for any future iPhone X models, suggesting the device will be killed off this year, Campling said. ‘With the declines in iPhone X orders and the inventory issue at TSMC at record highs, which basically reflect a need to burn off inventory. Why? Because the iPhone X is dead,’ Campling wrote in his note.”
“He clarified that any old inventory of iPhone X models will still be on sale, but no new ones will be produced,” Kharpal reports. “The iPhone X has had a rocky road to market. It was delayed after being announced last year, and a recent report from the Nikkei suggested Apple had cut its production targets for the phone… In January, noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities, said the iPhone X could be canceled in the summer.”
“Campling said any cancelation of the iPhone X will have a big impact on AMS. The chipmaker could see as much as a 35 percent quarter-on-quarter decline in revenue in the second quarter, worse than the expected 18 percent reduction,” Kharpal reports. “‘If the iPhone X is being killed off then you may go from a production of 12 million in Q1 to potentially zero in Q2, then that is a $60 million hit alone (to revenues),’ Campling said in a note.
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: And then mass production of the trio of new iPhone models begins and suppliers surge along with Apple.
Especially with AMS AG, we strongly assume that at least two of Apple’s next-gen iPhones, and new iPad Pro models will have TrueDepth Camera systems on board, so keep that in mind if AMS shares get killed on Q2 results.
SEE ALSO:
Morgan Stanley: Apple stock may fall on ‘materially’ weaker iPhone sales – April 20, 2018
Ming-Chi Kuo: Apple to unveil two 6.1-inch LCD iPhones this year; one budget-priced at just $550, another with dual-SIM capability – April 18, 2018
Apple’s iPhone captured 86% of global handset profits in Q417; iPhone X alone took 35% of global handset profits – April 17, 2018
Bernstein: Ams AG is biggest winner in Apple’s TrueDepth Camera system – April 10, 2018
Apple’s iPhone X is the UK’s most popular smartphone – April 9, 2018
Apple to release Q218 earnings, webcast live conference call on May 1st – April 3, 2018
Ming-Chi Kuo: Apple’s next-gen 6.1-inch LCD iPhone to outsell next-gen 5.8- and 6.5-inch OLED iPhone X models – February 5, 2018
