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Garmin to Gain Traction Among Golfers with Approach S40 Watch

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Garmin Ltd. (GRMN - Free Report) seems not to be content enough when it comes to making advances in the booming wearable market on the back of its expanding smartwatch portfolio.

The latest launch of the company’s GPS smartwatch, Approach S40, backs this fact. Notably, the new watch is designed for golfers and offers high-sensitivity GPS golf accuracy and keeps track of everyday activities.

The watch helps to measure and auto-record golfers’ detected shot distance with the help of AutoShot Game Tracking integration.

Additionally, it is capable of displaying precise yardages to the front, middle and back of the green, hazards, doglegs and many more. Also, the watch seamlessly locks in on a golfer’s location with its responsive GPS receiver.

We believe Garmin will be able to deliver an enhanced gaming experience to golfers with robust features of Approach S40. Apart from the above-mentioned features, the new watch provides access to over 41,000 preloaded courses to golfers.

All these will help the company in gaining momentum among golfers.

Gaining Competitive Edge

Garmin’s growing focus on golfers is likely to strengthen its competitive position against the likes of Fitbit and Apple (AAPL - Free Report) , who are also making advances to bolster their wearable space presence by offering golf GPS tracking facility.

Fitbit integrates GAME GOLF GPS into Fitbit Ionic smartwatch series, which helps in seamless tracking of stats, trends and dynamics of the golf game.

Meanwhile, Apple, with the help of Hole19, offers users of Apple Watch with a golf GPS tracking system. Users need to download the Hole19 app on their iPhones and connect the app with Apple Watch via Bluetooth.

However, Fitbit and Apple have less exposure to the golf gaming space compared with Garmin.

Apart from Approach S40, Garmin offers Approach S10, X10, X40, S60 and S20, which are designed specifically for golfers. Hence, the company’s wide portfolio of golf smartwatches will continue to strengthen its market position against Fitbit and Apple.

Wearable & Smartwatch Space Holds Promise

Garmin’s focus on expanding the wearable watch portfolio remains a major positive.

Apart from the latest launch, the company recently unveiled a range of tool watches, the MARQ series — including MARQ Aviator, MARQ Driver, MARQ Captain, MARQ Expedition and MARQ Athlete — which are designed for various categories namely aviation, automotive, marine, outdoor and sports markets.

These watches will better serve people interested in flying, racing, sailing, exploring and sports performance.

We believe Garmin’s strengthening wearable offerings will help it penetrate the global wearable market, which, per Statista, is expected to generate $14.5 billion revenues in 2019. The figure is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.7% between 2019 and 2023, and hit $17.4 billion by 2023.

Further, per Allied Market Research, the global smartwatch market is likely to witness a CAGR of 16.2% between 2018 and 2025, and is anticipated to reach $31.1 billion by 2025.

Per Statista, the smartwatch shipment across the world is expected to reach 89.1 million units by 2022 from 43.5 million units in 2018.

Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks

Garmin currently flaunts a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Another top-ranked stock in the broader Computer and Technology sector is Autohome Inc. (ATHM - Free Report) , which also sports a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Long-term earnings growth rate for Autohome is projected at 29.41%.

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