Analyst: iPad Sales Have Strong Momentum

Apple sold over a million iPads in the U.S. in 28 days, and the multimedia tablet looks to have strong momentum moving forward, especially with the iPad 3G finally on store shelves, according to UBS analyst Maynard Um.

“We surveyed about 75 consumers outside of Apple stores in New York on Friday in line for the 3G iPad,” Mr. Um said. “In general, demand appeared solid, but less than initial iPad launch, and in line with expectations, with the $629 16GB model being the most popular model (57 percent of purchasers), followed by the $729 32GB (29 percent) and then [the] $829 64GB [model].”

Based on customer responses, Mr. Um doesn’t have any concerns that strong iPad interest will eat into sales of other Apple products.

“While iPad sales are tracking better than expected, we continue to believe that the iPad will not cannibalize Mac sales and view the device as a largely incremental growth opportunity for Apple,” he said. “Our survey on Friday of Apple customers in line for the 3G iPad — and our survey on April 3 when the WiFi iPad went on sale — supports our view, as customers surveyed overwhelmingly indicated that the iPad would not replace their computers.”

Some 94 percent of the iPad customers UBS surveyed indicated they won’t be replacing their computers with their new multimedia tablets.

Looking forward, Mr. Um expects iPad sales will surpass his 2.1 million unit estimate for calendar 2010 thanks to strong consumer interest.

Mr. Um is maintaining his “Buy” rating and US$315 target price for Apple’s stock. Apple is currently trading at 265.89, up 4.80 (1.84%).