Apple today announced its fiscal first-quarter 2023 (fourth calendar quarter) revenue results. It reported revenue of $117.2 billion and a net quarterly profit of $30.0 billion, or $1.88 per diluted share. That is compared to revenue of $123.9 billion and a net quarterly profit of $34.6 billion, or $2.10 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter.
Apple’s revenue was down approximately 5% year-over-year, a steeper decline than had been expected by analysts. Apple struggled with iPhone supply issues, while also seeing declines in Mac and wearables.
“As we all continue to navigate a challenging environment, we are proud to have our best lineup of products and services ever, and as always, we remain focused on the long term and are leading with our values in everything we do,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO.
“During the December quarter, we achieved a major milestone and are excited to report that we now have more than 2 billion active devices as part of our growing installed base.”
“We set an all-time revenue record of $20.8 billion in our Services business, and in spite of a difficult macroeconomic environment and significant supply constraints, we grew total company revenue on a constant currency basis,” said Luca Maestri, Apple’s CFO. “We generated $34 billion in operating cash flow and returned over $25 billion to shareholders during the quarter while continuing to invest in our long-term growth plans.”
Apple’s board of directors has declared a cash dividend of $0.23 per share of the Company’s common stock. The dividend is payable on February 16, 2023, to shareholders of record as of the close of business on February 13, 2023.
As they’ve done for the past several straight quarters, Apple is once again not issuing any guidance for the current quarter, which ends in March.
Jesse Cohen, senior analyst at Investing.com says the results show that even Apple is not exempt from the challenges facing companies during this weakening economy:
“Apple delivered a shockingly weak earnings report, with the tech giant underperforming expectations across nearly all segments, most notably its key iPhone business, and suffering its first revenue decline since 2019.
“A potent combination of supply chain issues, limited iPhone production at its Foxconn plant in China, and currency-related headwinds took a massive toll on Apple’s underlying business during the final three months of 2022.
“Apple’s poor quarter proves that even the most valuable U.S. traded company isn’t immune to the challenges facing the tech industry at large.
“Despite mounting optimism that the worst is behind us, the poor results and light guidance from Apple, Alphabet, and Amazon underline the several challenges the tech sector faces amid the current economic climate of slowing growth and elevated inflation.”
