(AFP Photo)
Apple’s net profits fell to $9.5bn for the second quarter, ending 30 March 2013, of the current fiscal year, down 18% from $11.6bn, and representing the first drop in Apple’s net profits since 2003.
The company’s revenues, however, increased 11% to reach $43.6bn, up from Q2 2011-2012’s $39.2bn.
A number of analysts polled on Wall Street expected the company to post lower revenues, including a Thomson Reuters poll that predicted revenues of $42.31bn.
iPhone and iPad sales also beat estimates, which were at 36.5 million and 18.3 million units respectively. The company recorded 37.4 million iPhone units sold and 19.5 million iPad units. These represented 6.6% and 65% rises year-on-year respectively.
“We are pleased to report a record March quarter revenue thanks to the continued strong performance of iPhone and iPad,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, in the company’s press release. He also hinted at a number of new products, saying that Apple is currently “hard at work on some amazing new hardware, software, and services”, and that the company was “very excited about the products in our pipeline”.
During a conference call following the release, Cook also said that the company “was participating in large and growing markets” where it sees “opportunities in front of us, particularly given the long-term prospects of the smartphone and tablet market and the strength of our incredible ecosystem, which we plan to continue to augment with new services. Our plans include expanded distribution and exciting new product categories”.
The company, famous for its staggering cash reserves which at one point during 2011 topped US Treasury Department figures of $73.7bn for the US government itself, reached $145bn in the second quarter.
“Our cash generation remains very strong, with $12.5bn in cash flow from operations during the quarter and an ending cash balance of $145bn,” confirmed Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer.
