Global Equities Research Raises Apple PT, Watch 'Makes Every Other Watch Look Dumb'

Global Equities Research issued a company update on Apple Inc. AAPL ahead of the launch of the Apple Watch. Global Equities Research maintained Apple’s Overweight rating and raised the price target from $165 to $176.

Analyst Trip Chowdhry wrote, “Just like iPhone makes every feature phone look dumb, Apple Watch makes every other watch look dumb...A new category has been created today...Demand for Apple Watch is extremely strong. Apple can easily sell 40 to 42 million Apple Watches, as we have explained in our previous reports, in CY 2015.”

The firm attributes much of the success of the launch of the Apple Watch to launch parties that grew the anticipation of the practical applications of the watch. After speaking with consumers, the analyst found a general trend of customers switching from Android to iPhones due to the fact that the Apple Watch is only compatible with Apple products. Analysts noted that pre-orders will comfortably exceed 2.5 million watches.

Related Link: Gene Munster: The Apple Watch Is A Game Changer

In a previous article on Benzinga, Sean Udall of Quantum trading Strategies discussed the upgradeable nature of the Apple Watch.

"I think most of the improvements will occur in the internal guts of the watch. Effectively, a watch is a watch. Apple can literally upgrade a few key components inside."