9/21/2012
By David Silver, Research Analyst

More Articles by David Silver

I wish I could be one of those crazy people waiting in line at the Apple store waiting for my chance to buy one of the new iPhones.  I am a big fan of my iPhone 3GS, when it works, and am really excited for when I finally get to purchase a new iPhone 5.  The big phone companies, such as AT&T (T), Verizon (VZ), and Sprint (S) are all trading well today as the sales of iPhone are expected to be strong; some estimates put the figure at 6 million iPhone 5's over the weekend. 
There are already complaints about the new Apple Maps though.  Apple decided to use its own map program with its new operating system instead of Google Maps which has been a fixture on iPhones.  YouTube, which was one of the mandatory app icons on previous versions of the iPhone, is also missing.  The war between Apple and Google continues, with the maps feature being the next battlefield. 

Reading some of the blogs of people that have been waiting in lines, it seems the best way to get an iPhone 5 is to go to your respective provider.  While there were hundreds of people waiting in line at various Apple Stores; Verizon, Sprint, and AT&T stores saw far less traffic. 

Many of the suppliers have not seen nearly the type of year that Apple has had.  A perfect example is Skyworks Solutions (SWKS).  The Company increased guidance yesterday to the high end of its previous range and was still above the Street's forecasts, but the stock was beaten down almost 20% on the day.  It has bounced back a little bit today, but not nearly to the same extent.  It seems that people expected a huge increase in forecasts, but the fact remains, the average dollar content for SWKS in the new iPhone increased compared to the iPhone 4 and 4S. 

Technology stocks as a whole got a boost from the Apple release, while "safe" sectors are also being bought today on the rebound in oil.  Oil prices have dropped more than 5% this week, which was once blamed on a "fat finger" trade, but now, following the inventory report, maybe it was not such a fat finger after all.  Stocks are off their highs, and are fighting to stay in positive territory for the day and the week. 

David Silver
Wall Street Strategies