Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

CTOnews.com August 8, August 3, local time, Apple released its third-quarter results for fiscal 2023, which is also the second quarter of 2023 natural year results. Total revenue for the quarter was $81.8 billion, down 1.4% from $83 billion in the same period last year and nearly 14% from $94.88 billion in the previous quarter, according to the financial report. It is also the first time that Apple's revenue has declined year-on-year for three consecutive quarters since 2016.

The results disappointed investors, and Apple was not optimistic about its September quarter, with gross margin and revenue growth expected to slow. The news raised concerns about apple's future, causing its share price to fall nearly 10% since last Thursday, wiping out more than $200 billion in market value (CTOnews.com note: currently about 1.44 trillion yuan). Apple shares continued to tumble today, falling 1.7%.

Analysts say there are three main reasons why Apple has been hit so hard:

One is the decline in income. The iPhone is Apple's most important product, accounting for nearly 50% of its total revenue. In the June quarter, however, iPhone's revenue fell 2.4% from a year earlier to $39.7 billion. Although Apple has grown in services, such as App Store, iCloud, Apple Music, Apple TV + and Apple Pay, revenue from these businesses is still unable to make up for the iPhone gap. In addition, Mac revenue fell 7.3 per cent to $6.8 billion in the quarter, while iPad revenue plunged 19.8 per cent to $5.8 billion.

Second, the performance guidance is weak. Apple is also not optimistic about the September quarter, with gross margins of between 44% and 45%, and revenue growth flat or slightly lower than last year. While revenue from iPhone and services may increase slightly, Luca Maestri, Apple's chief financial officer, said revenue from Mac and iPad will continue to decline.

Third, the valuation is too high. Despite three consecutive quarters of declining revenue, apple's shares rose 51% in the first half of this year, making its price-to-earnings ratio as high as 33 times. Even after the recent fall in its share price, Apple's price-to-earnings ratio is still 30 times earnings. By contrast, the S & P 500 trades at about 20 times earnings. Some analysts believe that Apple's valuation is too generous to reflect the macroeconomic environment and competitive pressures it faces.

Wall Street analysts do not agree on Apple's future. Some analysts who are bullish on Apple believe that the decline in iPhone sales is only temporary and does not represent a reduction in demand. They point out that iPhone's revenues actually rose 1.4 per cent year-on-year after the exchange rate adjustment. They also say Apple still has great potential in overseas markets, especially in emerging markets such as China and India. They expect a "mini supercycle" of demand to be triggered by the launch of the new iPhone 15 in September.

Other cautious analysts believe that Apple is struggling to get rid of its dependence on iPhone and faces multiple challenges such as slowing growth in the smartphone market, increased competition and increased regulatory risks.

It remains to be seen whether Apple can make a comeback or continue to decline.

Welcome to subscribe "Shulou Technology Information " to get latest news, interesting things and hot topics in the IT industry, and controls the hottest and latest Internet news, technology news and IT industry trends.