Apple: Piper Says Early China iPhone Numbers “A Disappointment”

The early read on Apple (AAPL) iPhone sales in China is “a disappointment,” Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster commented in a research note today.

As I noted earlier, China Unicom (CHU) said it sold 5,000 phones in the four days since sales launched on October 30. Munster said using the June 2007 U.S. launch as a comparison, he would have expected sales of about 30,000 units.  Munster writes that he remains confident in his December quarter estimate of 9.3 million phones, which is above the consensus at 8.8 million, but that the data from China “removes the potential for significant iPhone unit upside” in the quarter.

Munster says he had originally thought China could contribute 1-2 million units to his 36 million unit estimate for 2010; the current run rate would suggest 550,000 a year, he reports.

Munster keeps his Overweight rating and $277 price target on the stock.

Apple today fell 56 cents, or 0.3%, to $188.75.