Will Apple Sell Less Of The Rumored '5SE' Than Expected?

Expectations for the world’s largest public company seem to be relatively low for Apple Inc. AAPL standards heading into the company’s Q4 earnings report. The stock has started off the year down 6.0 percent, but the company’s all-important iPhone sales numbers out this week will likely be the determining factor in how the stock finishes out the month of January.

While most analysts and onlookers are concerned about iPhone sales in Q4 of 2015, BlueFin analysts John Donovan and Steve Mullane took a look into their crystal ball this week and reduced their sales estimates for an Apple device that has not even been released or announced yet.

According to BlueFin’s supply chain checks, Apple will not be producing nearly as many of its rumored small-screened iPhone 5se devices as it previously had planned.

Related Link: Apple's Long-Term Chart Remains Bullish
 

“We have recently uncovered sharp reductions in the supply chain for the upcoming 4-inch model (rumored to be names iPhone 5se), which currently suggests only 12-15M shipments in the calendar year, essentially half of the initial projections of 25-30M,” BlueFin reported.

Overall, the firm has reduced its 2016 iPhone sales projections from 230 million units to 210 million.

Disclosure: the author holds no position in the stocks mentioned.