Analysts are super bullish on Apple after the 'powerful, lovely' iPhone X (AAPL)

iPhone X

Apple finally launched its much-hyped iPhone X on Tuesday, a tenth anniversary version of the iPhone with facial recognition, augmented reality features, and a near bezel-free screen.

The £999 iPhone X was the highest-end of three new iPhones alongside the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus. Apple also unveiled the Apple Watch Series 3, which has its own data connection for the first time, 4K on Apple TV, wireless charging, and a number of software updates.

Analysts stayed bullish on iPhone X after Tuesday's event, and stuck by predictions of a "super cycle." The supercycle theory suggests many iPhone users have phones that are more than two years old, and they will upgrade en masse for the new phone in a huge wave, akin to the experience with iPhone 6.

That's despite one major shocker: Apple said it won't be shipping that high-end iPhone X until November.

For analysts, this has had a knock-on effect on their predictions for Apple's financial results. Apple's fiscal year 2018 starts in October, meaning the company won't be feeling any positive effects from the iPhone X for its current financial year.

Ultimately though, it doesn't really matter, because there'll be so much demand for the new iPhones when they arrive.

As analysts at Macquarie wrote: "[We] are not too concerned about a one- or two-quarter delay in supply as long as demand remains robust (which we expect). We still expect this to be a 'super-cycle,' meaning bigger than the previous biggest cycle (iPhone 6), and think that the new features and innovations will drive strong demand while allowing Apple to remain the preeminent smartphone brand on the planet."

Here's what Wall Street had to say:

Bank of America Merrill Lynch: BULLISH

Rating:Buy

Price target:<$180

Comment: "Apple introduced facial recognition technology for iPhone X (Face ID), and while the focus is more on security/access, a Snapchat demo revealed improved facial masking AR capabilities. While Facebook was not highlighted, masking features on Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger could see similar quality improvements. One incremental risk we highlight is the introduction of 'animojis' which could potentially draw usage from Snapchat & Instagram, and suggests that Apple could be a bigger competitor in the messaging arena."

BMO Capital Markets: BULLISH

Rating: Outperform

Price target: $180

Comment: "[We ]see a very strong setup into the quarter, with nearly one-third of the
new iPhone installed base being two years or older. Combined with a total installed base of 745 million exiting the June quarter, including 261 million used iPhones, we believe plenty of consumers will be motivated to upgrade to the new models, even with the higher pricing."

Deutsche Bank: NEUTRAL

Rating: Hold

Price target: $140

Comment: "Given the size of Apple's supply chain, it remains challenging for the company to deliver new product surprises and today's launch was no exception."

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