Apple Sets New Record with 9M iPhone Sales Over the Weekend

Apple stock surged in pre-market trading Monday morning after the company announced that it sold 9 million iPhones since Friday’s launch of the powerful iPhone 5s and colorful iPhone 5c. The numbers beat analyst expectations of 5 to 7.75 million units handily, and sent the stock up 3.75 percent to 484.75.

Apple today announced it has sold a record-breaking nine million new iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c models, just three days after the launch of the new iPhones on September 20. In addition, more than 200 million iOS devices are now running the completely redesigned iOS 7, making it the fastest software upgrade in history.

The launch also soared past the performance of last year’s iPhone 5, with 5 million sales in its first weekend of availability. The iPhone 4s, still available for purchase as Apple’s “free on contract” option, sold 4 million units during its first weekend.

Supply constraints have limited availability of certain iPhone models, particularly the flagship iPhone 5s, with many now sold out and new units not expected until October. While Apple undoubtedly included online orders for sold-out models in its reported sales figures, the lack of inventory at retail stores means that the weekend’s total could have easily been even higher.

Other interesting notes from Apple’s announcement:

• As mentioned in the quote above, more than 200 million iOS devices are now running iOS 7, a record-setting adoption rate.
• More than 11 million unique listeners have tried out Apple’s new iTunes Radio service, a free feature built in to the Music app in iOS 7.
• Since its public launch, the most listened-to song on iTunes Radio is currently “Hold On, We’re Going Home” by Drake.
• Apple CEO Tim Cook verified that the company has run out of its initial inventory for the iPhone 5s, but that retail stores will “continue to receive new shipments regularly” as they become available.