(San Francisco) Apple achieved $89.5 billion in turnover in the fourth quarter of its staggered financial year, a drop of 0.72% over one year, the fourth in a row for the Californian group, weighed down by computer sales in decline.
The iPhone manufacturer’s revenues nevertheless exceeded analysts’ expectations, which is also the case for its net profit, which stood at $23 billion (+11%), according to its press release on Thursday.
Sales of its flagship product reached $43.8 billion for the July-September period, a figure in line with market expectations and slightly better than the $42.6 billion in the same period last year.
Its services business, which notably includes the App Store application store, the Apple Music streaming platform and iCloud remote data storage services, is recording the best growth.
It achieved revenues of $22.3 billion, 16% more than in summer 2022.
Sales of computers, tablets and connected accessories all declined year-on-year.
Macs, in particular, suffer from an unfavorable comparison effect, because in the fourth financial quarter of 2022 the group had made up for production delays linked to the closure of sites in the spring, due to cases of COVID-19.
Their turnover collapsed by more than a third, to $7.6 billion for the past quarter.
Chinese request
Apple’s stock fell slightly (-1%) during electronic trading after the close of the New York Stock Exchange.
The group had seen its turnover decline in the previous three quarters, due to the deceleration of iPhone sales, but its financial director had promised an “acceleration” for smartphones and services during the summer.
As the holiday season approaches, analysts are watching for signs of whether or not consumers have an appetite for the new iPhone line presented in September. The base model, the iPhone 15, starts at $800, while the most expensive professional model, the iPhone 15 Pro Max, costs a minimum of $1,200.
“Chinese demand around the iPhone 15 appears to have slowed over the past month after experiencing strong pre-order activity,” noted Dan Ives.
The Wedbush analyst nevertheless remains optimistic for the sales of this product, a true “goose that lays golden eggs”, because he estimates that more than 100 million iPhones in China are old enough for their owners to consider purchasing a newer device, especially “Pro” models.
Banned watches
This summer, the global smartphone market hit its lowest level for a third quarter in ten years, according to research firm Counterpoint Research.
Inflation and economic uncertainties are weighing on this market which had also benefited greatly from the pandemic in previous years.
Apple is doing better than the world number one, Samsung, and the Chinese Xiaomi: iPhone sales have plunged less over one year (-9%) than those of these main competitors (between -13 and -15%) , according to Counterpoint.
As for connected accessories, the activity achieved almost stable sales during the past quarter, at $9.3 billion.
The Apple brand suffered a setback in this sector last week, when an official American body recommended a ban on imports into the United States of certain models of Apple’s connected watch, manufactured in Asia.
This decision follows an intervention by the medical device manufacturer Masimo, which accuses the Californian giant of having copied its technologies for measuring the level of oxygen in the blood.
Apple said it would appeal the decision in federal court, further asserting that it was Masimo who copied its watch.