Q1 sales thought to be unexpectedly high

MacBook Air shipments could hit 1.6 million units per quarter during the next 12 months, argues JP Morgan's Mark Moskowitz. The analyst notes that shipments in the last quarter reached about 923,000, 44 percent higher than the quarter before that, and above the 17 percent for Macs as rule. Sales in the current quarter are only believed to be accelerating.

Multiplied by the average selling price of an Air, $1,150, 1.6 million units would translate into about $1.84 billion in quarterly revenue, and $7.36 billion per year. The latter would contribute 71 cents to annual earnings per share. Moskowitz suggests that China should help Mac sales as Apple continues to make deeper inroads into the country.

Air rivals based on Intel's Ultrabook platform aren't in a position to compete, the analyst adds. The computers lack "the right blend of features and attractive price points to grab market share," he suggests. Apple is however known to be controlling much of the supply of unibody aluminum frames for notebooks, putting other companies at an inherent disadvantage.

By Electronista Staff