T-Mobile’s CEO commentary on iPhone 16 demand is ‘positive,’ Morgan Stanley says

A number of analysts have made comments about weak pre-order demand for Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) new iPhone 16 line. However, T-Mobile (NASDAQ:TMUS) Chief Executive Officer Mike Sievert made comments at the company’s capital markets day that suggest iPhone demand is not quite as bad as feared.

“I think this one may unfold a little differently in terms of when the word of mouth takes off because the principal differentiating feature is coming in a later software release,” Siefert said at the event, referring to Apple Intelligence.

“That being said, sales are higher than last year, which is saying something because sales last year were quite strong…I get asked a lot, is this a super cycle, I don’t know what that is and this probably isn’t it,” Siefert continued. “But it’s vibrant and is higher than last year, and we suspect that it will be drawn out over time, a little more as people get the Apple Intelligence features later, start showing their friends and generate later excitement as opposed to in prior years.”

Apple is gradually rolling out the features of Apple Intelligence — which include an updated version of Siri, writing tools that can write, summarize and condense text, photo enhancements and more — in various updates to iOS 18.

Apple Intelligence is available on the iPhone 16 line and the now discontinued iPhone 15 Pro models.

Siefert’s comments are “important” because they suggest iPhone demand “might not be as bad as feared,” Morgan Stanley analyst Erik Woodring said, adding they were the “first positive commentary on iPhone 16 family demand.” Woodring has an Overweight rating and $273 price target on Apple.

Wireless carriers accounted for 43% of global iPhone shipments over the past 12 months and 66% of all U.S. iPhone shipments in the past 12 months, Woodring pointed out, making them the single largest channel for iPhone sales.