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Some analysts increase iPhone 5 sales predictions

Wall Street starts to react to the launch of the iPhone 5, and some analysts are projecting increased iPhone sales after seeing the final product.

Donna Tam Staff Writer / News
Donna Tam covers Amazon and other fun stuff for CNET News. She is a San Francisco native who enjoys feasting, merrymaking, checking her Gmail and reading her Kindle.
Donna Tam
2 min read
There were no surprises by the time Apple officially unveiled the iPhone 5. James Martin/CNET

Some analysts expect the iPhone 5 to be so popular that they've recalculated their iPhone sales estimates for September despite a lack of surprises in today's unveiling.

Analysts over at Piper Jaffray Investment Research, including known Apple guru Gene Munster, said the phone will "meet or exceed customer expectations," and upped their guesses for the overall iPhone market, according to a note from the firm.

Piper Jaffray said the the number of iPhones sold in the September quarter will reach 27.2 million -- that's an increase from the 22 million originally predicted. The iPhone 5 goes on sale on September 21, Apple announced today.

The analysts said the phone's details released today further cements the expectation that Apple will sell 6 million to 10 million iPhone 5s by the end of September. They expect good things for Apple's shares, and even throw in bets on the rumored Apple Television and the rumored iPad mini.

Apple's stock closed at $669.79 a share today, up 1.39 percent from yesterday.

Historically, Apple stocks trade down following product announcements, according to Piper Jaffray.

"We believe the trend may continue with the iPhone 5 announcement for a week, but expect shares to start working again once investors see the lines for the phone and going into earnings and a potential smaller iPad launch in October," the note reads.

Oppenheimer's Equity Research also weighed in on the unveiling effect on the market, saying that the lack of surprises mean they'll stick to their original numbers.

The firm's predictions are more conservative than Piper Jaffray's. Oppenheimer's analysts estimate Apple will ship 6 million to 7 million iPhone 5s by the end of September, with 25 million iPhones total for the September quarter.

The analysts also expect December to see 47 million iPhone units sold, and they aren't completely writing off the possibility of higher numbers spurred by international sales.

Watch this: iPhone 5 is thinner, lighter, faster