In the quarter Apple also sold a record 74.8 million iPhones, however sales were only up slightly from the 74.5 million units it sold in the same quarter a year earlier – marking the slowest growth ever for iPhone sales. During the first quarter of 2016, 74.78 million iPhones were sold by the company, which makes it the biggest contributor to its profit of $18.4 billion, out of a total of $75 billion in sales.
Advertisement
A year ago in Q1 Apple managed a record-breaking quarterly profit of $18 on $74.60 revenue, and beating that figure keeps the company fixed to the tech throne.
Technology experts said the results showed Apple’s “untouchable” brand was not immune to “smartphone fatigue” as the company failed to entice as many new customers with its latest iPhone features.
The company reported sales of “other products” – including the smartwatch and Beats music products – was $4.35 billion (nearly Rs 29,379.9 crore) in the past quarter but did not break down those figures. Sales of the company’s core product, the iPhone, were flat previous year for the first time since the popular device was introduced in 2007.
Sales of iPad tablets fell to 16.12 million from 21.42 million, while Mac sales slipped to 5.31 million from 5.52 million. Analysts had expected Apple to report earnings of about $3.23 a share on $76.54 billion in revenue, according to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters. If that were to be the case, it would mark Apple’s first fall in revenues since the launch of the first iPhone. Apple also predicted revenue for the second quarter of 2016, which is expected to be between $50 and $53 billion, down from $58 billion in revenue from the same period in 2015.
Meanwhiles, investors not only worry about a slowdown in iPhone sales, but whether Apple can pull off similar magic with a new consumer device.
“The growth of our services business accelerated during the quarter to produce record results”.
Advertisement
“While revenue in Greater China rose 14 percent in the last quarter, Apple is beginning to see a shift in the economy, particularly in Hong Kong”, said Apple Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri.
