Showing posts with label iPad 2. Show all posts
Showing posts with label iPad 2. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Apple Creates History with New iBooks Textbooks

"Apple announced iBooks 2 for iPad, featuring iBooks textbooks, an entirely new kind of textbook that’s dynamic, engaging, and truly interactive. iBooks textbooks offer iPad users gorgeous, full-screen textbooks with interactive animations, diagrams, photos, videos, and unrivaled navigation. Leading education services companies including Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, McGraw-Hill, and Pearson will deliver educational titles on the iBookstore, with most priced at $14.99 or less. And with the new iBooks Author, anyone with a Mac can create iBooks textbooks and publish them to Apple’s iBookstore. Starting today, iBooks 2 is available free from the App Store and iBooks Author is available free from the Mac App Store"



Textbooks they won’t want to put down. "A Multi-Touch textbook on iPad is a gorgeous, full-screen experience full of interactive diagrams, photos, and videos. No longer limited to static pictures to illustrate the text, now students can dive into an image with interactive captions, rotate a 3D object, or have the answer spring to life in a chapter review. They can flip through a book by simply sliding a finger along the bottom of the screen. Highlighting text, taking notes, searching for content, and finding definitions in the glossary are just as easy. And with all their books on a single iPad, students will have no problem carrying them wherever they go."

Bottomline:
The new iBooks Textbooks is an amazing innovation! I downloaded a couple of samples from the iBooks store, and also the awesome "Life on Earth". My kids and I were totally blown away by the quality of the textbooks, the interactivity and the overall experience! (about the only glitch was iBooks 2 hanging up when you launch the new textbook! But this problem seems to be intermittent.) Last year, when my son and I were driving to Los Angeles, I remember having a conversation with him in the car about how the next generation of eBooks should be interactive... when my son was in middle school, he was aspiring to be a writer (now he loves Physics). So, I was telling him that he should design eBooks that spring out from a reader, as if the story within becomes alive and real! For instance, while you are reading a paragraph, you can tap to make the whole story come to life! Wouldn't that be amazing! With the introduction of iBooks Textbooks, we are getting a whole lot closer!! These iBooks are interactive, intelligent and immersing! Would students learn more from these new iBooks? Would students gain more knowledge in a faster time? Would students with learning disability benefit further from these textbooks? Would teachers enjoy teaching through this new medium? Would iBooks textbooks fundamentally change how education is disseminated and consumed? Lots of intriguing questions will need to be answered in the coming year. Apple has the support of major education publishers. Apple iBooks Textbooks could become the new learning standard, and as history may note, usher in a new era of innovative education!

Download Apple's Innovation Strategy and Learn how Steve Jobs made Apple the #1 Innovative company in the world.

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Friday, September 16, 2011

Apple Grows Tablet Market Share

"Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:: AAPL) continues its success story with the iPad 2, as it has emerged as the leading tablet maker in the second quarter of 2011 in terms of global shipments. Research firm IDC confirmed that 9.3 million units of Apple’s iPad 2 being shipped during the quarter, netting a 68.3% market share worldwide, up from 65.7% in the previous quarter."
Bottomline: Apple iPad sales will explode in the third quarter. IDC estimates at least 62 million in tablet shipments in 2011. With Apple gaining 70% market share, this means at least 45 million iPads will be sold in 2011. Apple has sold little over 14 millions iPads through the first two quarters. This means, another 31 million iPads will be sold in the last two quarters. Recently, Apple has upped its local TV iPad 2 advertisements, and is poised to sell significant numbers of iPad 2 at home in the US, and worldwide! Apple will also announce the iPad later in the 4th quarter, along with the shipment of iPhone 5. Finally, Apple iCloud is also rolling out in the 4th quarter. All eyes on Apple to deliver another home run out of the ball park!

How does Apple, the #1 innovative company in the world, innovate and create game-changing innovations such as the iPod, iTunes, iPhone, iPad and more? What is Apple's secret recipe for innovation success?


Download Apple's Innovation Strategy, and learn how Apple became the #1 innovator through:

• Creativity and Innovation
• Innovation in Products
• Innovation in Business Model
• Innovation in Customer Experience
• Innovation and Leadership
• Steve Jobs Visionary Leadership
Revised in 2011! Steve Jobs interview

Download Apple's Innovation Strategy and Learn how Steve Jobs made Apple the #1 Innovative company in the world.

Download Now

References:http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Apple-Leads-Tablet-zacks-76625781.html

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

The Incredible Apple

Yesterday, Apple did the unthinkable, yet again! Apple blew away the revenue and earnings by a long shot. Apple announced record quarterly sales of over $28.57 billion, and profits of $7.31 billion ( Apple, what are you planning to do with all that cash? Perhaps you can buy out a country or two! )

Apple sold 20.34 million iPhones in the quarter, representing 142 percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter. Apple sold 9.25 million iPads during the quarter, a 183 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter. The Company sold 3.95 million Macs during the quarter, a 14 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter. Apple sold 7.54 million iPods, a 20 percent unit decline from the year-ago quarter.

We’re thrilled to deliver our best quarter ever, with revenue up 82 percent and profits up 125 percent,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Right now, we’re very focused and excited about bringing iOS 5 and iCloud to our users this fall.” (This means, iPhone 5 is coming this Fall as well!)

Apple Destroys Estimates AND the Stock Is Still Cheap! Here's what stood out:
* Apple's Cash on Hand grew by 16% to $76.2 billion. The number works out to roughly $81 per share. Were they so inclined, Apple could write checks for Netflix (NFLX) and Ebay (EBAY) combined and still remain liquid.
* Apple's revenue growth is actually accelerating.
* The company beat EPS estimates by over 30% and revenue forecasts by 15%. These numbers speak ill of the people analyzing Apple but are jaw-dropping nonetheless.
* The stock continues to perform yet somehow gets cheaper; trading at over 18x earnings yesterday and in the vicinity of a 15 P/E today.

Cramer on Wednesday raised his price target on Apple from $400 to $500 a share. Yet at the $500 level, the technology stock will be selling at just 11.5 times his estimates for next fiscal year's earnings, only three quarters of what the average company in the S&P 500 index sells for.
To Cramer, Apple is a great example of why capitalism is worth cheering for. Unfortunately, Apple also puts U.S. leaders to shame because all they can do is bicker. "The United States of Apple?" Cramer said, "Now that's a place Cramericans can call home."

Apple Earnings Call: "We are very excited to be launching Mac OS X Lion tomorrow. The Lion includes more than 250 new features such as a multi-touch gestures, system wide support for full screen apps, Mission Control, which is an innovative view of everything running on your Mac and much more."
"iPhone continues to be adopted as the standard across the enterprise with 91% of the Fortune 500 deployed or testing the device, up from 88% last quarter. We're also seeing great growth in scale worldwide. Today, 57% of Global 500 companies are testing or deploying iPhone, fueled by strong employee demand and opportunities for custom App development. Some examples of Global 500 companies supporting iPhones on their corporate networks, include AXA, Credit Agricole, Nestlé, Dow Chemical, GlaxoSmithKline, SUPERVALU and Comcast."
"We are also seeing strong adoption internationally with 47% of Global 500 companies testing or deploying iPad. In the 15 months since iPad has shipped, we've seen iPads used in the enterprise in ways we could have never imagined. Companies like Boston Scientific, Xerox and Salesforce.com are deploying thousands of iPads and revolutionize in how their sales teams engage their customers. iPad is being used inside the country's top hospitals like HCA and Cedars-Sinai and in retail at Nordstrom and at Esteé Lauder's Clinique counters. General Electric, SAP and Standard Charter have developed internal Apps for training, currency tracking and business process management to help make employees even more productive. And Alaska Airlines and American Airlines are using the iPad in cockpit to replace paper-based navigational and reference information pilots carry with him on every flight."
- Peter Oppenheimer, Apple CFO
"China was very key to our results. As a reminder, we define Greater China as Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Year-over-year, it was up over 6x and the revenue was approximately $3.8 billion during the quarter and that makes the year-to-date numbers through the 3 quarters that we've had thus far around $8.8 billion. And so this has been a substantial opportunity for Apple and I firmly believe that we're just scratching the surface right now. I think there is an incredible opportunity for Apple there." - Timothy Cook, Apple COO

Bottomline:
Apple dropped a huge sales bomb again! Apple's quarterly revenue and earnings explosion is just the beginning! Expect Apple to deliver successive quarters of record sales and earnings in the foreseeable future. About the only thing that can bring Apple down is supplier constraints. But Apple has planned well in this department as well; Apple's inventory is healthy, and current generation products are getting rolled out without any delays. As schools resume in Fall, and as we get closer to the holiday season, Apple revenue machine will accelerate faster! A $40 billion holiday quarter is indeed a possibility... Apple makes more money internationally than in the U.S.; 62% of sales came from international operations in the latest quarter. This means that Apple has become a true global company, and has even less dependency on local market going forward. It also means that the world has more buying power and buys more Apple products thatn U.S. does. This is both a challenge and opportunity for Apple going forward. Apple now has to design products that cater to international buyers. And assuming that the world is still warming up to Apple, the global demand for future Apple products will be very high. As the U.S. economy improves, Apple will derive even more sales locally, giving its quarterly revenue numbers bigger boost! Apple is a winner no matter what!
When a billion cell phones are sold every year worldwide, if Apple is able to increase its marketshare to 10%, this would translate to 100 million iPhone annual sales. Apple just sold over 20 million iPhones. Expect a 25 million iPhone quarter in the near future. As for the iPad, there are many choice tablets available. However, at $499, iPad 2 offers an amazing mix of features and functionality in one incredible machine. Can Apple sell 15 million iPads next quarter? Quite possibly. Apple just announced the latest MacBook Air at starting price of $999. It's faster, ships with Mac OS X Lion, has Flash storage, backlit keyboard, camera and most everything you need as your entry notebook. This will help accelerate the sales of MacBooks in the coming quarters. Finally, the all important iOS 5 and iCloud are coming this year... along with the launch of iPhone 5. Apple has the whole world in awe with its product wizardry! The Incredible Magic of Apple!

How does Apple, the #1 innovative company in the world, innovate and create game-changing innovations such as the iPod, iTunes, iPhone, iPad and more? What is Apple's secret recipe for innovation success?


Download Apple's Innovation Strategy, and learn how Apple became the #1 innovator through:

• Creativity and Innovation
• Innovation in Products
• Innovation in Business Model
• Innovation in Customer Experience
• Innovation and Leadership
• Steve Jobs Visionary Leadership

Revised in 2011! Steve Jobs interview

Download Apple's Innovation Strategy and Learn how Steve Jobs made Apple the #1 Innovative company in the world.

Download Now

Monday, April 11, 2011

Why Apple is a BUY at these levels

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) has corrected 8% from the 52 week high of $364.90 set on Feb 16, 2011.



Apple 8% Correction from high of $364.90 set on Feb 16, 2011

Apple is set to announce record quarterly earnings this month on the heels of the hot launch of the iPad 2 and iPhone 4 on Verizon. The average quarterly estimate is $5.33 EPS on $23.18 billion of quarterly sales - a spectacular growth of 60.10% in earnings, and 71.70% in sales. Compare this to the quarterly earnings growth of 20.80% for the average S&P 500 company. Thus, Apple earnings growth is poised to be more than three times that of the average S&P 500 company.

Apple Muddied Picture

Apple's current P/E is 18.69, while the forward P/E is only 12.56 - a significant undervaluation of Apple's future potential. What's wrong with this picture? Here are possible explanations: 1. Retail investor is holding out until after the earnings are announced 2. Current NASDAQ-100 rebalancing that reduces Apple's 20% stake to around 12%, and surrounding liquidation by funds 3. Steve Jobs medical leave, and speculation about his health 4. Downgrade by JMP Securities analyst.

Apple Quarterly Milestones

Apple has made significant announcements during the last quarter, which should translate to real growth in quarterly sales. Key Apple milestones include:

1. iPad 2 launch in U.S.A on March 11

2. iPad 2 launch in 25 countries on March 25

3. Revved up MacBook Pro launch on February 24

4. iPhone 4 launch on Verizon Wireless on February 2

5. App Store growth juggernaut on January 22

What will be Apple's earnings this quarter?

Three earnings scenarios are plausible:
1. Apple beats the average earnings estimates of $5.33 by at least 50 cents, and announces in the vicinity of $5.83 (40% probability).

2. Apple makes the average earnings estimate of $5.33 (50% probability).

3. Apple misses the average earnings estimate by 10 cents and announces $5.23 earnings (least likely, 10% probability).

Accounting for all probabilities, Apple's mean earnings will be around $5.52 for this quarter; this will increase its prior 12 months earnings to $20.10. If Apple's current P/E were to remain the same at 18.69, Apple stock price should appreciate to $375.57.

There you have it: If Apple delivers reasonable quarterly earnings of $5.52, and current P/E of 18.69 remains constant, Apple's stock price should jump to $375.57.

What's the upside?

Some analysts estimate Apple's earnings to be as high as $5.98.  If Apple were to kill its quarterly earnings, and make this high estimate, watch out from above! This will increase Apple's prior 12 months earnings further to $20.56, or fetch an Apple stock price of $384.27! (at the current P/E of 18.69)

On an average, Apple has beaten the average earnings estimate by 20.3% during the previous four quarters. If Apple were to match this average, Apple could deliver whopping surprise earnings of $6.42. Imagine that! This will increase Apple's prior 12 months earnings to $21, or fetch an even higher Apple stock price of $392.49! (at the current P/E of 18.69)

Thus, we have three possibilities of where the Apple stock price could be post earnings:

1. $375.57 (for mean earnings of $5.52)

2. $384.27 (for analyst high earnings of $5.98)

3. $392.49 (for an Apple high earnings of $6.42)

Analysts are even more bullish

The mean target for Apple's 12 month price as per 46 analysts is $424.80, which is higher than all three possibilities above. The median is $440.00. The high target is $550.00, and the low target is $200.00. The high-low 12 month average target price is also $375.
Apple Price Target Summary
Mean Target: 424.80
Median Target: 440.00
High Target: 550.00
Low Target: 200.00
No. of Brokers: 46
Data provided by Thomson/First Call

Caveat: Stock Price Drops after earnings

Apple stock has not done well immediately after earnings announcement. On an average, Apple stock has actually dropped 4.48% post earnings during the previous four quarters, before it begins appreciating. This could mean that further downside to Apple stock is entirely possible after the earnings are announced this quarter. However, one can argue that Apple stock has already corrected significantly this quarter, and is priced for perfection post earnings to go up. 

Where will Apple stock price end up after quarterly earnings call is anybody's guess... For instance, if Steve Jobs participates in the earnings call, the investors will welcome him and get excited about Apple's future. All eyes will be on the iPad 2 quarterly sales, Mac shipments, iPod sales, iPhone 4 growth and importantly, margins. If Apple were to hit a home run on all of these, Apple stock has nowhere to go, but up! We do know one thing for sure: At current price point of $335.06 as of Friday's close, Apple is quite undervalued! Even if the Apple stock remains undervalued and the P/E of 18.69 stays constant, it is reasonable to expect at least a 12% upside in the near term post earnings. $375 could be just round the corner!
Apple's Innovation Strategy
How does Apple, the #1 innovative company in the world, innovate and create game-changing innovations such as the iPod, iTunes, iPhone, iPad and more? What is Apple's secret recipe for innovation success?


Download Apple's Innovation Strategy, and learn how Apple became the #1 innovator through:

• Creativity and Innovation
• Innovation in Products
• Innovation in Business Model
• Innovation in Customer Experience
• Innovation and Leadership
• Steve Jobs Visionary Leadership

Revised in 2011! Steve Jobs interview

Download Apple's Innovation Strategy and Learn how Steve Jobs made Apple the #1 Innovative company in the world.

Download Now