Apple’s share price falls more than seven per cent in after hours trading after disappointing results
Apple posted a sharp fall in revenue, pushing its share price down by more than seven per cent in after hours trading.
Revenue was reported at $50.6bn (£34.7bn), below the expected $52bn, and 13 per cent down on the $58bn reported in the same quarter a year ago.
Earnings per share for the second quarter were reported at $1.90, against analysts' expectations of $2.00, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.
The tech giant was widely anticipated to report its first quarterly decline in revenue since 2003 due to a fall in iPhone sales, which are Apple's cash cow.
Sales of iPhones came in at 51.2m, above expectations, but down 10m from the same period a year ago.
Read more: Apple is about to report its first slowdown in more than a decade
Selling prices were lower, which led revenue to fall by 16 per cent. Apple sold each iPhone for an average of $642 in the period, down from $691 in the three months prior.
The iPhone accounted for 65 per cent of Apple's total revenue in the March quarter.
For the third quarter Apple set sales guidance at between $41bn and $43bn.
Apple is not immune from an overall global slowdown in the smartphone market. They have reached saturation point in established markets and brands — even Apple — are unable to wow consumers with innovative features at the rate they used to.
In China Apple has been facing competition from cheaper phones from companies such as Xiaomi. So it's not good news that Apple revenue in Greater China fell 26 per cent during the quarter to $12.5bn.
Read more: More proof Apple's iPhone sales are stalling
"Our team executed extremely well in the face of strong macroeconomic headwinds," said Tim Cook, Apple’s chief executive. "We are very happy with the continued strong growth in revenue from services, thanks to the incredible strength of the Apple ecosystem and our growing base of over one billion active devices."
Apple's stock is down near 21 per cent on the year.