Apple Hits Q4 Revenue Record Thanks To Premium Priced iPhone X And iPhone 8
Analysts have been sour on Apple's flagship iPhone X device, slashing their sales forecasts on reports of lower-than-expected demand. Whatever the official tally, however, it did not stop Apple from posting another record quarter. The Cupertino company raked in $88.3 billion in revenue during its fiscal 2018 first quarter ended December 30, 2017, a jump of 13 percent compared to the same quarter a year ago and an all-time high. Quarterly earnings hit $3.89 per diluted share, up 16 percent and also a record.
Apple's new iPhone handsets drove those record-setting figures, including its iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X. And with regards to the iPhone X specifically, Apple CEO Tim Cook said it has been the top-selling iPhone each week since it launched, with demand surpassing the company's expectations.
"We’re thrilled to report the biggest quarter in Apple’s history, with broad-based growth that included the highest revenue ever from a new iPhone lineup. iPhone X surpassed our expectations and has been our top-selling iPhone every week since it shipped in November," said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. "We’ve also achieved a significant milestone with our active installed base of devices reaching 1.3 billion in January. That’s an increase of 30 percent in just two years, which is a testament to the popularity of our products and the loyalty and satisfaction of our customers."
Cook's statement and Apple's figures run counter to reports that Apple ordered its suppliers to cut iPhone X production in half during the first quarter of 2018. KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo even wrote in a note that he expects Apple to discontinue the original iPhone X this fall when a second generation model emerges, rather than reduce the price. That obviously remains to be seen, but if the iPhone X is lighting up Apple's sales charts, it's hard to imagine the company removing it from its product stack.
The main knock against the iPhone X has been its high price tag. It starts at $999—and is an incredible value, if you ask Cook—and goes up from there. But rather than turn buyers away, the premium price tag has effectively pushed the average selling price (ASP) on iPhones at large up $100 to $796. That more than offset the slight drop in total iPhone sales, which topped 77 million units during Apple's fiscal first quarter, versus 78 million units a year ago.
Looking ahead, Apple expects revenue for the current quarter to end up being between $60 billion and $62 billion—not too shabby.
