On November 3rd, Beijing time, Apple released its financial reports for the fourth quarter and full year of the 2023 fiscal year as of September 30th. According to the financial report, Apple's total net sales in the fourth quarter were $89.498 billion, a decrease of 1% from $90.146 billion in the same period last year; The net profit was $22.956 billion, an 11% increase from $20.721 billion in the same period last year.
Apple's sales have been declining for four consecutive quarters, with the longest duration since 2001. After the US stock market closed, Apple fell more than 4% at one point.
Sales have been declining for four consecutive quarters
According to the financial report, Apple's revenue from the iPhone in the fourth quarter was $43.805 billion, compared to $42.626 billion in the same period last year, making it the only hardware business that saw year-on-year growth.
Apple's other hardware revenue has all declined year-on-year, with the Mac plummeting by 34%. In the December quarter, revenue may have fallen by another 5%, which contradicts the market's expected return to growth.
After the financial report was released, Apple Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri stated in a conference call with analysts that the current quarter's revenue will be "similar" to last year. Maestri also stated that Apple expects revenue for Mac, iPad, and wearable devices to "significantly slow down" compared to the fourth quarter.
Maestri pointed out that the expected decline in Mac sales is due to the market environment and what he called "a difficult situation compared to a year ago". He added that Apple is indeed continuing to attract new buyers for Mac, and said, "About half of the buyers this quarter are new buyers
Due to the four consecutive quarters of declining revenue and weak guidance from Apple, the company's stock price fell by over 4% after hours.
Greater China revenue decreased by 2.5%
According to the financial report, Apple's revenue in the Greater China region for the fourth quarter was $15.084 billion, a decrease of 2.5% year-on-year, and it is also under increasing pressure.
JPMorgan Chase analyst Samic Chatterjee pointed out this week that the market is concerned that the iPhone 15 is losing market share in China.
In the current Chinese smartphone market, Apple is facing significant competitive pressure from its peers. Previously, Huawei Mate 60 was sold out online and offline in seconds, with a shipment volume of 70 million next year; Later, Xiaomi 14 broke records with its aggressive first sales, and even some bloggers revealed that JD platform data showed that Xiaomi 14 had surpassed iPhone 15 Pro's first sales, breaking the platform's single item sales record in the past year.
According to the report, Qualcomm also stated that the smartphone chip business of Chinese Android phone manufacturers has increased by 35%, indicating that a large number of consumers are choosing non iPhone phones.
Cook Says iPhone Performs Well in China
However, Cook is very optimistic about the Chinese market. He said on the financial report conference call that he was "very optimistic" about Apple's long-term prospects in the Chinese market. The iPhone set a record in Chinese Mainland in the quarter of September, and the iPhone accounted for the top four best-selling phones in urban areas of China. I just went to China and the interaction with customers, employees, and the local community made me very excited.
Regarding Apple's latest iPhone 15 release, Cook stated that its performance is better than the iPhone 14 released in the same period last year. If you look at the performance of iPhone 15 during this period and compare it with iPhone 14 in the same period last year, you will find that iPhone 15 performs better than iPhone 14, "Cook said. He added that due to strong demand, Apple's more expensive Pro and ProMax iPhones have encountered supply constraints.
Apple's downturn may continue
For Apple, this downturn may continue for some time. In the past three months, the value of this world's largest company by market value has significantly decreased. Since Apple announced its third quarter results on August 3rd, its stock price has fallen by 11% and its market value has evaporated by nearly $400 billion.
This is the first time since 2015 that Apple's stock price has fallen between the developer conference in June and the fourth quarter financial report at the end of October.
Apple will also face significant pressure to address external concerns that its lucrative revenue from Google may be threatened. The US government continues to exert pressure, claiming that paying to make Google the default search engine on Apple devices gives the search and advertising giant an unfair advantage.
Currently, Apple holds $162.1 billion in cash, down from $166.5 billion in the previous quarter. Maestri wrote, "We have returned nearly $25 billion to shareholders while continuing to invest in our long-term growth plan