Apple: Piper Ups Target to $718 on Higher iPhone, iPad Share

Piper Jaffray’s Gene Munster this morning reiterated an Overweight rating on shares of Apple (AAPL) and raised his price target to $718 from a prior $670, to account for upwardly revised growth rates for the smartphone and tablet markets.

Munster now sees Apple shipping more units, but also maintaining higher share of those markets than he previously thought.

Munster now expects Apple to sell 189 million iPhone units in calendar year 2013, up from a prior 162 million estimate, representing 23% market share, year over year, up from a prior expectation for just 20%, and up from 21% share in 2012.

That’s out of a total projected market for 804.6 million smartphones in 2013. Munster sees Apple holding a third of the market by 2015, with 385 million iPhones sold.

On the tablet side, Munster now sees Apple’s iPad losing only minor share in 2013, versus a former expectation for a 12% loss.

Munster estimates Apple may sell 86.5 million iPads in calendar 2013, up from a prior 75.5 million estimate, and 44% higher than 2012′s number. That would give Apple 60% of the tablet market, versus his prior estimate for 52% share. That’s out of a total of 143.9 million tablets in 2013.

By 2015, Apple may still have 60% of the market, with 176 million iPad units sold. Munster left unchanged his estimate for 134 million iPhones this year, and 60 million iPads.

Munster raised his 2013 estimate to $189.5 billion in revenue and $48.90 per share in profit, up from $176.99 billion and $45.79. He left unchanged a 2012 fiscal forecast for $159.8 billion in revenue and $43.54 per share.

None of Munster’s estimates factor in the introduction of a full-blown television set by Apple, he notes.

Munster’s price target increase represents the latest in a series of analysts joining The 700 Club: As I wrote yesterday,�Canaccord Genuity’s Mike Walkley raised his target to $710 and Morgan Stanley’s Katy Huberty increased hers to $720. The average price target on the Street now is $609.84, according to Factset Research Systems.

Apple shares this morning are are down 58 cents at $589.

Fin