Apple iPad Worries Spell Upside: Goldman

Apple(AAPL) investors should not lose sleep about the tech giant's rumored iPad supply cuts, according to Goldman Sachs(GS), which instead sees an opportunity for upside.

Apple shares were weighed down on Monday by a JP Morgan report that the tech giant has cut orders to suppliers of parts for its iPad tablets, potentially signaling weak demand. At one point, shares of the Cupertino, Calif.-based firm were down 3%, before rallying to close down just 0.3%.

Goldman, however, thinks that investor concerns about iPad demand are way overblown. "Order cuts do not signal a demand problem," explained Goldman analyst Bill Shope, in a research note released on Tuesday. "Production data can often be misleading as a read on Apple's reported shipment levels."

While Goldman also notes iPad supply chain cuts, this is hardly cause for panic, according to Shope. "Apple suffered from iPad supply constraints until July of this year, so in our view it is not unreasonable to assume the company decided to overprovision capacity as it approached the holidays," he wrote. "Now the company is normalizing its order patterns."

Apple, which reinvented the tablet market when it launched its iPad last year, has already sold more than 28 million of the devices. The gadget maker sold a record 9.2 million iPads during its recent fiscal third-quarter results, a massive hike of 183% compared to the prior year's quarter.

With Apple on deck to launch a host of new products, Shope actually sees iPad supply worries as a gilt-edged opportunity for investors.

"As we have noted in the past, supply chain concerns generally represent ideal buying opportunities for Apple's stock," he explained. "A demand-centric bear case on Apple's stock will quickly disintegrate in the face of multiple October product catalysts (next-gen iPhone, iOS5, and iCloud), remarkably s! trong Se ptember quarter results, and what we expect to be solid iPad, Mac and iPhone momentum in the December quarter."

After months of rumor and speculation, Apple confirmed on Tuesday that its next big product event will take place on Oct. 4, likely marking the debut of the new iPhone 5.

The eagerly-anticipated product launch looks set to be a redesigned iPhone run on a dual-core processor with a better camera. There has also been chatter about a stripped-down iPhone 4 to sell into expanding markets such as China.

Shares of Apple crept up $3.13, or 0.78%, to $406.3 on Tuesday.

Apple has not yet responded to TheStreet's request for comment on this story.

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