Piper's Gene Munster Highlights Survey Results Showing iPhone's Rising Popularity Among Teens

At a time when Apple Inc. AAPL bears argue that the iPhone market is reaching saturation, the latest numbers from Piper Jaffray indicate that the iPhone may actually be gaining popularity among teens.

According to analyst Gene Munster, 74 percent of teens now say they have an iPhone, up from 69 percent in Spring of 2016. In addition, 79 percent of teens now expect their next phone to be an iPhone, up from only 75 percent in the spring. Munster noted that the jump in popularity among teens is the largest the firm has witnessed in its bi-annual survey since spring/fall 2014.

“While we don’t view the iPhone 7 as significant as an upgrade as the iPhone 6, we believe this is a positive data point on how consumers are viewing the new device,” Munster explained.

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Piper Jaffray found even more encouraging results in the tablet space as well. Tablet ownership among teens ticked up in the most recent survey for the first time since fall 2014. Apple gained 2 percent tablet market share, up from 64 percent in the spring to 66 percent in the Fall. Microsoft Corporation MSFT added 2 percent market share, while Alphabet Inc GOOG GOOGL lost 2 percent.

Apple Watch remains the top smartwatch among teens, but the device’s market share fell from 69 percent in the spring to 63 percent in the fall.

Piper Jaffray maintains an Overweight rating on Apple and a $151 price target for the stock.

At last check, Apple was up 0.45 percent at $117.52.

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