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Technology giant, Apple, sold 47.5million iPhones last quarter to June 27 and recorded huge profits which rose 38% to $10.7billion. Revenue was up 33% to $49.6billion.Chief executive Tim Cook called it “an amazing quarter”, but minutes after the company made that announcement, its shares fell as revenue forecast disappointed analysts.
Apple’s share price stood at $180.74 before trading began on Tuesday, but after trading hours in New York, it had fallen to $121.89. (6.7% fall).
Analysts blamed the fall on disappointment about the company’s revenue forecasts for the fourth quarter, which were slightly lower than expected, as well as the firm’s profits being too heavily dependent on the iPhone.
Despite the market reaching saturation point, some analysts believe that the sales jump should help the company reassure investors that demand in China remains robust.
But Colin Gillis, an analyst for BGC Partners, told the BBC that the firm’s “complete dependence” on iPhone sales and growth in China was still a concern.
He said: “Look at the PC market. People ask if that could ever happen to smartphones. Of course it could. And there are risks associated with its dependence on China”.
Mr. Gills however added that investors should put the results into perspective, saying:”Overall the results are stunning – it’s made $10bn in profit. But Apple is an outlier in many metrics, so you need to look at the performance relative to expectations”.
The third quarter is typically the weakest for iPhone sales because many customers hold off buying new phones, on the expectation of a new model, something Apple is traditionally known to introduce towards the end of a calender year.
The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, which smashed iPhone sales records when they were launched last year, are now 10 months old.