White iPhone 4 Still In Stock (AAPL, VZ)

At this time on March 11, 2011, the iPad 2 had sold out nationwide. But despite the unfathomable amount of hype surrounding Apple's AAPL long-awaited color change, the white iPhone is still widely available. Benzinga placed calls to Apple stores in New York City, Los Angeles and San Francisco to check on the supply of the whitened device. While store specialists were reluctant to provide specific numbers, they all confirmed that the white iPhone 4 is still in stock. This, of course, is to be expected. The original, black-only iPhone 4 has been available for nearly a year. The over-hyped Verizon VZ version arrived two months ago. Aside from late adopters and other consumer anomalies, it seems that most everyone who truly wants an iPhone 4 has already purchased one. James D. Ragan, Senior Equity Analyst at Crowell, Weedon & Co., reiterated his view on the white model, adding that it is “just an additional model for Apple.” “I think it will be a success,” Ragan told Benzinga this afternoon. “Will it sell out? I don't know.” While Apple is unlikely to announce how many white iPhones were shipped today, AppleInsider reports that shipments of the CDMA version may have been cut in half. Presumably, this would apply to both colors of the device. Plausible or not, Ragan isn't buying into this rumor. “I'd be surprised if that's true,” he said. “iPhone sales were strong in the quarter. Qualcomm QCOM sales were strong in the quarter.” (On April 20, 2011, Apple reported Q3 revenues of $24.67b vs. 23.38B estimate. Qualcomm reported impressive earnings on the same day.) Ragan added that if the CDMA shipments have been reduced, it could simply be because the current demand for the Verizon model is not as strong as it was when it first arrived – not because the actual demand failed to meet expectations.