Samsung officially unveiled its flagship Galaxy S4 smartphone last night at a theatrical, Broadway-style presentation in New York, and analysts are quick to jump in today with opinions on what it means for Apple. AAPL is having a decent morning hitting a high of 442.50 and opinions from analysts seem to be split down the middle regarding whether the S4 has what it takes to cut into Apple’s market share.
Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray doesn’t seem too impressed with the S4 upgrade but noted Samsung’s new S Band is “a quick first pass for Samsung on wearable technology ahead of Apple’s watch. Munster added that he expects Apple to launch its smart watch product by 2014 (via Barron’s):
Jefferies analyst Peter Misek thought the S4 will be “incrementally negative for Apple” but doesn’t view the S4 upgrade as “revolutionary” (via Zdnet):
Sterne Agee’s Shaw Wu lowered his price target today from $715 to $630 after the introduction of Samsung’s Galaxy S4, while noting that recent supplier checks indicated production of current iPhones has slowed as Apple gears up for an iPhone 5S launch later this year. He doesn’t, however, expect an iPhone with a larger screen until 2014 (via MarketWatch):
Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities said today that recent supplier checks indicated Apple would launch its rumored low-cost iPhone with the same 4-inch display as the iPhone 5. He also said the device will be made out of a “super-thin plastic casing mixed with glass fiber” and come in four to six colors. Kuo claimed earlier this year that Apple will include a fingerprint sensor under the home button in an iPhone 5S, and today confirmed he still believed the device is coming later this year.
BTIG analyst Walter Piecyk chimed in yesterday, claiming a new low-cost iPhone is “necessary in order for Apple to grow its EPS next year” (via AllThingsD):
Barclays’ Ben Reitzes thought Samsung’s momentum “is a major issue for Apple,” and the GS4 will be more competition as expected (via Fortune):
