SAN RAMON, Calif. (AP) — Apple’s iPhone sales soared yet again in the past quarter, but didn’t grow as rapidly as analysts anticipated, a sign the company’s momentum may be slowing amid supply shortages that have made it more difficult to meet the demand for a wide range of products.
So far the shortages that have curtailed production of everything from automobiles to video game consoles haven’t been been major problem for Apple. Although the company’s quarterly results released Thursday served as evidence of its products’ continuing success, they also indicated Apple isn’t immune to the supply headaches.
The company earned $20.6 billion, or $1.24 per share, during the July-September period, a 62% increase from the same time last year. Revenue climbed 29% from the same time last year to $83.4 billion.
While the earnings matched the estimates of Wall Street analysts that sway investors, the revenue fell below analyst projections of roughly $85 billion for the quarter, according to FactSet Research.
That letdown may have been a factor in a nearly 4% decline in Apple's stock price in extended trading after the numbers came out.
As usual, the iPhone remained Apple’s financial engine, with sales of the device rising 47% from last year to $38.9 billion for the quarter. But analysts had predicted iPhone sales of roughly $41 billion for the quarter.
The period marked the end of Apple’s fiscal year — a stretch in which iPhone sales totaled $192 billion, by far biggest volume recorded by the company since the device’s debut in 2007.
Apple’s previous iPhone record came in fiscal 2018 when sales of the device totaled $165 billion.
The gain posted in the latest quarter were skewed by supply shortages caused the release of last year’s model, the iPhone 12, to be delayed until October and November instead of Apple’s usual late September timeline.
This years new model, the iPhone 13, came out Sept. 24, helping Apple ring up more sales of the device in the latest quarter.
The big numbers suggest there may be strong consumer interest in the iPhone 13, even though the model isn’t dramatically different from the changes made in last year’s model.
The big wild card is whether shortages in computer chips and other technology components will create a backlog in iPhone orders heading into the pivotal holiday shopping season.
Apple so far has been able to avoid major decreases in iPhone production, with CEO Tim Cook indicating the supply shortages have primarily affected the company’s Mac laptops and iPads.
In a conference call, Cook estimated Apple would have generated an additional $6 billion in revenue during the quarter, if not for supply shortages
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