JPMorgan Chase: iPhone 13 series and upcoming iPhone SE model will drive Apple to set new annual financial records again in 2022

Investment bank JPMorgan Chase expects the iPhone 13 series and the upcoming iPhone SE model to drive Apple to another record annual financial year in 2022. In a note to investors, JPMorgan analyst Samik Chatterjee outlined some of his expectations for Apple's September 14 "California Calling" event. The analyst also answered some of the top questions from Apple investors.

First, Chatterjee does not expect any surprises in the iPhone 13 lineup. However, he believes that pricing for the new lineup is still unknown, and there is a possibility that supply constraints will lead to later-than-usual shipping dates, but does not believe that these delays will affect earnings.

"Apple has guided fairly conservatively for Q4, in our view," Chatterjee wrote. "We believe its conservative estimates can still be met based on existing momentum in iPhone 12 sales, as well as momentum in Mac and iPad sales, while a normalized shipment schedule closer to late September would imply an upside to consensus estimates."

Even if the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro mark peak 5G smartphone sales, Chatterjee still thinks investors should be excited about the iPhone 13. He said the combination of the iPhone 13 and a new iPhone SE model in 2022 could see 2021 iPhone sales "equal to or exceed already-set expectations."

Looking ahead, Chatterjee also noted that the easing of COVID-19 restrictions in many parts of the world could slow growth in Apple's services. In other words, the current 30% growth is unsustainable. This is true even though the analyst believes that legal challenges and App Store concessions will only have a limited impact on Apple's services revenue.

In addition, Apple's earnings growth may be better than consensus expectations as iPhone, Mac, and iPad sales participate in the moderation. On the one hand, Apple is not overly profitable in 2021 and expects operating profit to continue to grow year-on-year.

Chatterjee maintained his 12-month price target for Apple of $180, which represents a price-to-earnings ratio of 30 times JPMorgan’s 2022 earnings estimate of $6.12.

From cnbeta