Nintendo Co.'s Switch console is poised for its best holiday shopping season yet.

The company will probably sell 9.46 million units of Switch hardware and 64.73 million units of software in the quarter ending in December, according to analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. While the forecast console numbers would mark only a slight improvement over last year's results, games deliver most of Nintendo's profit, and software sales may climb about 23 percent.

Achieving those numbers could prompt Nintendo to revise its conservative earnings outlook for the year ending next March. The Switch's performance in its third holiday season will also hold clues for the console's longevity in an industry where hardware is typically overhauled every five years and rivals Microsoft Corp. and Sony Corp. are already planning new machines for the end of 2020.