AT&T Apple iPhone: AT&T Leans on Apple iPhone to Set Holiday Sales Record

AT&T Apple iPhone: The 2012 holiday season was a big one for the folks at AT&T. According to a report by AppleInsider, the carrier set a new company sales record by selling approximately 10 million smartphones during the fourth quarter of calendar year 2012. Of these 10 million units, reports suggest that the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone was responsible for 8 million.

Below is a closer look at the statistics for the 2012 holiday season, as well as sales for the same quarter in 2011. Per AppleInsider:

“AT&T’s 10 million smartphones sold in the fourth quarter of calendar 2012 bested its previous record of 9.4 million units set in the 2011 holiday season. In previous quarters, the lion’s share of smartphones sold at AT&T were iPhones, which has led Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray to forecast sales of 8.1 million iPhones through AT&T.”

“The carrier said on Tuesday that it sold a record number of iPhones in the holiday quarter. AT&T’s previous record came in the 2011 holiday quarter, in which it sold 7.6 million iPhones.”

“Munster views AT&T’s announcement as in line with his expectations. He has forecast total sales of 45 million iPhones in Apple’s December quarter.”

Apple Inc. (AAPL) to be Added to Several WisdomTree ETFsAt this point, it is easy to see that AT&T is having no trouble riding the coattails of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s iPhone. It will be interesting to see if sales numbers are made public from other carriers, such as Verizon, in the weeks to come.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and AT&T were not the only companies that had quite a bit of success during the holiday rush. Samsung is expected to report year over year growth of 75 percent, based on a reported sale of 63 million smartphones in the fourth quarter 2012.

The AppleInsider article quotes Munster in a note to investors:

“We believe the numbers from Samsung continue to point to our belief that Apple needs to accelerate its product release schedule and introduce a lower priced device.”

What do you think about Munster’s opinion? Do you feel that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) needs to offer a lower priced iPhone to better compete with rival Samsung?

Check back here for more updates on AT&T Apple iPhone.

DISCLOSURE: I have no positions in any stock mentioned.

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