Apple prepped for holidays

Apple has eliminated its product lead times as it heads into the final stretch of the holiday shopping season, which places the company in a far better position than it experienced the same time during the last two years. The company has little-to-no pre-holiday supply constraints, according to Piper Jaffray senior analyst Gene Munster, and average lead-times at the Apple online store are currently 24 hours, down from 1-2 days one year ago and six days 2 years ago. "Our analysis of product lead-times in early December over the last three years shows that Apple has more favorable supply levels this year than in the prior two years," Munster wrote in a research note obtained by MacNN. "In early December 2006, lead-times averaged 24 hours across all iPod and Mac products. This figure is down from a 1-2 days delay average lead-time for iPods and Macs in 2005, and an average six day delay in 2004 (five days for iPods, seven days for Macs).

The analyst believes the changes are not the result of decreased demand, but rather Apple's proper anticipation of seasonal patterns. "Apple has simply improved its ability to anticipate and avoid constraints during peak buying times," the analyst said. Apple has historically been constrained by supply during the holiday shopping season with longer product lead-times, but December 2006 data shows the supply ramp improving.

"Apple will likely always struggle to find the balance of supplying hot new products just after they launch, but the company is doing a better job of anticipating seasonal buying patterns and ramping iPod and Mac production accordingly," said Munster.

by MacNN Staff