iPhone 7 Social Media Buzz Underwhelming

The latest data from TickerTags suggests Apple Inc. AAPL’s iPhone may be starting to lose its social media luster. Apple is expected to report its second consecutive quarter of negative iPhone sales growth after the market close on Tuesday, but Apple shareholders are hoping that the iPhone 7 will renew market interest. Unfortunately, TickerTags has found a lackluster amount of social media buzz about the iPhone so far this year.

TickerTags monitors social media sites to identify trends by searching for words and phrases that appear together in social media content, such as tweets.

Organic mentions of iPhone on Twitter are down 40 percent so far this year compared to the same period in 2015. In addition, conversations containing both “iPhone” and “upgrade” are down 30 percent.

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Wall Street is expecting EPS of $1.39 per share from Apple in Q2, well short of Q2 2015’s $1.85 per share. The Street is also anticipating revenue of $42.1 billion, almost right in the middle of Apple’s guidance from a quarter ago.

Apple tends to release new iPhone models in September, meaning that the most important part of the company’s earnings report will likely be its guidance for Q3. If social media buzz is any indicator, Apple shareholders could be in for some major iPhone 7 disappointment.

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