Apple Inc. Sees The Worst Qtr In 13 Years As iPhone Sales Drop

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Apple’s Inc. record-setting growth in iPhone sales has finally come to an end. On Tuesday, the Cupertino, California-based company posted its first quarter earnings, reporting its first-ever year-over-year decline since 2003.

iPhone sales finally drop

For the quarter, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) reported revenue of $50.6 billion, down from the $58 billion it reported during the same period last year. The dwindling iPhone sales were the most telling number in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s earnings report, a clear indication of the fact that people aren’t buying enough of them.

For the quarter, iPhone shipments were about 50 million, drastically less than the 61 million reported last year. The iPhone maker also reported shrunken revenues for the first time in the last 51 quarters. Prior to the earnings call on Tuesday, the growth period Apple was experiencing was one of the greatest in American history.

During the past decade, Apple’s growth has mainly come from record-setting iPhone sales. The iPhone’s contribution to Apple’s total revenue is nearly 66%, and the same is true in this quarter. The company made a haphazard iPhone SE launch earlier this year and released the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus last year.

Nevertheless, analysts are expecting iPhone sales figures to go up when Apple reveals its next iPhone in September.

Apple (AAPL) stock also feels the pressure

Apple’s earnings per share fell by 18% to $1.90, well below Wall Street’s expectations of $2 per share on revenues of $52 billion. Apple issued a gloomier than expected outlook for the current quarter as well. The U.S. firm expects revenues to fall in the range of $41 to $43 billion, which is lower than what most analysts had been expecting.

The disappointing EPS and sales figures showed their impact on Apple’s share prices. A decline of 7.9% was noted in after-hours trading, after which the stock closed at $96.10. Asian suppliers too had to bear the brunt with the stock markets in tech-heavy South Korea, Taiwan and Japan being dragged lower.

From 1991 to 1997, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s stock lost 80% of its value, but in the following two decades, it saw an astonishing growth of 21,000%, says Gizmodo. As a result, cofounder Steve Jobs was propelled into legend status among the technology community.

In regular trading Tuesday, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares closed down 0.69% at $104.35. Year to date, the stock is down by almost 3%, while in the last year, it is down by almost 20%. The stock has a 52-week high of $134.54 and a 52-week low of $92.

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