Analyst doubles Apple Watch sales prediction to 12 million sold in 2015

With Best Buy and Target offering discounts on the the Watch during the Thanksgiving weekend, FBR & Co. analyst Daniel Ives predicts that sales could reach 6 million for the three-month period leading up to the end of 2015, doubling his estimated total sales figure for the year to 12 million, according to Apple Insider.

In early November, Canalys reported that the smartwatch reached 7 million sales, lower than what analysts predicted for Apple’s first wearable. Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty said the Apple Watch would reach 30 million sales in the first year, but KGI Securities analyst Ming Chi-Kuo predicted 15 million sales, a much closer estimate to Ives’ claim of 12 million.

Ives used anecdotal evidence and checked with Apple retail stores on Friday to reach his conclusions. In his note to investors, he said that the wearable devices market will be a $20-billion-plus market opportunity for Apple.

“We continue to view the Apple Watch as a potential door opener for wearable technology across the board, as this next paradigm shift is likely set to take place across the consumer/enterprise landscape,” he wrote.

IBM’s Watson Trend report also mentioned that the Apple Watch is at the top of consumer shopping lists.

Apple, as usual, is keeping quiet on sales numbers, but the company did say in July that the Apple Watch outsold the first-generation iPad in its first nine weeks in the market.

Also related: Apple Watch review (Updated for OS 2.0)

While Apple Watch sales may not have met initial expectations, the company is far from losing its place in the wearable market. In fact, Strategy Analytics reported that Apple took the largest share of wearable sales during the July-September period, a whopping 72.8 percent. The market share doesn’t look too good for Samsung, as it dropped to 9.8 percent.