iPhone sales in the second quarter of this year may plummet by more than 1/3, Goldman Sachs said in a report today. The wall street bank downgraded Apple's stock rating from "neutral" to "sell."
Goldman Sachs analyst Rod Hall said in the report that iPhone sales will drop by 36% year-on-year in the second quarter of this year due to economic development hit by the new coronavirus epidemic.
Next, market demand will gradually recover, and is expected to decline by only 2% by the fourth quarter of this year.
Hall also pointed out that during this period, the average selling price of the iPhone will also remain weak.
While lowering its stock rating, Hall also lowered Apple's target price from $250 to $233, the second lowest among analysts tracked by Bloomberg.
Today, Apple no longer announces the sales of its smartphones, but according to the seven analysts surveyed by Bloomberg, it is expected that Apple will sell 28 million iPhones in the quarter ending in June.
According to the average expectation of three analysts, iPhone sales during this period will decline by 27% year-on-year.
In contrast, according to Apple employees who participated in an online meeting this Thursday, CEO Tim Cook is optimistic about the company's outlook after the outbreak.
Apple plans to reopen its retail store in South Korea, which is the first time it has reopened since closing all 458 stores outside China in March.
Apple will announce its second-quarter financial results on April 30 (as of the end of March).
