Apple iPhone 14 sales are off to a brisk start, helped in the U.S. by high-profile advertising campaigns and promotions from the major wireless carriers.
AT&T recruited basketball great LeBron James as a pitchman for the iPhone 14. Verizon hired the stars of two Apple TV+ shows for its iPhone 14 ads: Adam Scott of "Severance" and Cecily Strong of "Schmigadoon!" And T-Mobile is hawking its 5G network coverage as superior.
Evercore ISI analyst Amit Daryanani said carrier promotions and trade-in deals are amplifying the iPhone launch.
"The aggregate promotions are a significant positive for Apple — these actions act as an underappreciated lever that could ease price points for consumers and support a strong iPhone cycle," Daryanani said in a note to clients late Tuesday. "It is also worth noting that Apple itself is continuing to provide aggressive trade-in deals."
The carrier promotions for the iPhone 14 are slightly more aggressive than their deals last year for the iPhone 13, he said.
AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon Deals On iPhone 14
So far, T-Mobile has been the most aggressive, Daryanani said. It is offering up to $1,000 off iPhone 14 Pro models for customers who get the Magenta Max plan and have an eligible trade-in. The deal includes free Apple TV+ service. T-Mobile also has a buy-one-get-one-free deal, worth up to $700, when you buy the standard iPhone 14 and add a second line.
AT&T and Verizon also are offering up to $1,000 off iPhone 14 models on select wireless plans and eligible trade-ins.
Daryanani rates Apple stock as outperform with a price target of 190.
On the stock market today, Apple stock fell 2% to close at 153.72.
'Brisk Sales' For New Phone
The iPhone 14 series officially went on sale Friday, after a week of preorders. Apple introduced its 16th-generation smartphones at a fall product launch event on Sept. 7.
Wedbush Securities analyst Daniel Ives said he is seeing "brisk sales" of the iPhone 14, especially the pricier Pro models.
"We believe the iPhone Pro mix is up to 85%-90% vs. iPhone 13 Pro mix in the 60%-65% by this point in the cycle," he said in his note to clients Tuesday. Ives rates Apple stock as outperform with a price target of 220.
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