For an instance, the title may seem like an ugly joke. Apple iPad is undisputed king of the tablet market. The tablet has sold millions of
units while its competitors start gloating over selling a couple of hundred thousand units. However, the title is a reality. In fact, iPad sales numbers have driven some of the analysts to slash their sales forecasts.
Apple delivered spectacular numbers for its quarter ended March 31, 2011. The company almost doubled its profits. However, the company sold only 5 million iPads during the quarter, thus falling behind the estimated targets of 6 million units. However, it should not be taken as an indictment of the company. The last month of the quarter saw the launch of iPad 2, which was gobbled up furiously by the consumers and the gadget went into wait list mode soon after its launch. Had it been available freely, the company sure could have met the target.
However, that did not stop from industry analysts from slashing their future sales targets. Again, it seems like a sensible approach, since supply is not expected to see a major upside any time soon. The natural calamities in Japan have made things even worse. IHS iSuppli chose to cut its forecast by good 9.2 percent. It now expects Apple to ship 39.7 million iPad units this year. However, compared to other Wall Street firms such as Bank of America and JPMorgan, this estimate is still a rosy one. Both JPMorgan and BofA have presented their forecast at sub 30 million levels.
Apple also stressed the fact that it sold each and every unit of iPad it manufactured. Despite the slashing of sales numbers for iPad, most of the analysts are still bullish about the company. They have also shown faith in the company's new commander, chief operating officer Tim Cook. The company managed to show stupendous performance for the quarter, even when its legendary CEO was on medical leave. Hence, we can safely assume that investors are safe with Apple and should we say, users are too safe with their precious Apple gadgets.