Posted on 10/21/2008 11:01:56 PM PDT by Swordmaker
Apple today announced financial results for its fiscal 2008 fourth quarter ended September 27, 2008. The Company posted revenue of $7.9 billion and net quarterly profit of $1.14 billion, or $1.26 per diluted share. These results compare to revenue of $6.22 billion and net quarterly profit of $904 million, or $1.01 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Gross margin was 34.7 percent, up from 33.6 percent in the year-ago quarter. International sales accounted for 41 percent of the quarter’s revenue.
MacDailyNews Note: Analysts' consensus estimates for Apple's Q4 08 called for $1.11 EPS, on revenue of $8.05 billion, or 29.4% YOY sales growth. Peter Oppenheimer, Apple’s CFO, had provided guidance of "about $7.8 billion" and earnings per diluted share of "about $1.00.”
In accordance with the subscription accounting treatment required by GAAP, the Company recognizes revenue and cost of goods sold for iPhone and Apple TV over their economic lives. Adjusting GAAP sales and product costs to eliminate the impact of subscription accounting, the corresponding non-GAAP measures (more info) for the quarter are $11.68 billion of “Adjusted Sales” and $2.44 billion of “Adjusted Net Income.”
Apple shipped 2,611,000 Macintosh computers during the quarter, representing 21% unit growth and 17% revenue growth over the year-ago quarter. The company sold 11,052,000 iPods during the quarter, representing 8% unit growth and 3% revenue growth over the year-ago quarter. Quarterly iPhone units sold were 6,892,000 compared to 1,119,000 in the year-ago-quarter.
“Apple just reported one of the best quarters in its history, with a spectacular performance by the iPhone—we sold more phones than RIM,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO, in the press release. “We don’t yet know how this economic downturn will affect Apple. But we’re armed with the strongest product line in our history, the most talented employees and the best customers in our industry. And $25 billion of cash safely in the bank with zero debt.”
“We’re very pleased to have grown revenue 35 percent and to have generated $9.1 billion in cash in fiscal 2008,” said Peter Oppenheimer, Apple’s CFO. “Looking ahead, visibility is low and forecasting is challenging, and as a result we are going to be prudent in predicting the December quarter. We are providing a wide range for our guidance, targeting revenue of $9.0 to $10.0 billion and earnings per diluted share between $1.06 and $1.35.”
MacDailyNews Take: Analysts' consensus estimates for Q1 09 call for $1.65 EPS, on revenue of $10.57 billion, or 10.0% YOY sales growth. It's nice to see Apple providing a "wide range" instead of harder guidance, but even the top end of EPS guidance doesn't come close to expectations. We'll see how the market treats this guidance. If history is any guide, it won't be pretty.
Apple will conduct a conference call to discuss the company's results today, Tuesday, October 21, 2008 at 2pm PT/5pm ET.
MacDailyNews will be covering the conference call via live notes at that time. The live coverage will appear at the top of our home pages shortly before 5pm ET.
The link to the QuickTime stream of the conference call is here.
http://finance.google.com/finance?client=ob&q=NASDAQ:AAPL
In one month AAPL and HPQ down 25%
MSFT down 15%
My prediction is the new Apple laptops will not sell well. People will go for cheaper options in this economic climate
Try since August 27th when Dell opened at 25.97. Today, it closed at 11.98 Down 54% in less than two months. And your point is?
I love Macs!!! Windows machines are just unnecessarily complicated and irritating. The Mac that I am using right now is 8 years old and going strong. I have 2 newer ones as well. Both are at least 6 years old and doing great as well. I’ve always been one to “Think different”. Macs are rare in this part of the country. Love ‘em.
Why wouldn’t you get a great computer instead of a cheap one now? Seem to be a much smarter move to me. I would rather have one that will last 4-5 years than one that will limp through 2.
Did you not also predict that the iPhone wouldn’t sell and that the iPod was just a faddish toy?
What I’m seeing (and thinking) is that people will do the exact opposite. They have money *now*, they know they may not have money later. Is it better to buy something cheap now that you might have to replace in 18 months (when you may not have the money) because it’s died, or spend a bit more now and have something that’s good to go for an average of 8 years? People made the same call during the Great Depression - most of the ones with money opted to buy quality NOW to be certain it would last until their economic fortunes improved. Those that bought cheap gear were found dead somewhere in the desert between Oklahoma and California next to their jalopy.
The same thing is happening now - people are saying “enough of the constant PC service bills and 18 month upgrade cycle cost” and buying Apple gear instead. This isn’t just my own observation as an IT consultant; if you’ve been watching the sales numbers, Apple’s sales have actually *accelerated* as the economy gets worse, at the expense of PC makers.
I don't need a great computer plus I don't think Apple gives as good value for the money as ye plain old windows machine. You may think otherwise.
I need a good and functional computer which is what I'm typing on right now. Dual core Athlon 4600/2gb memory/XP I put together
For some items I get the best
Not so for computers
I have made negative comments about both but not like those... I think you have someone else in mind or a composite of Freepers that piss on Apple
Apple’s business strategy of not making entry-level/bargain-basement models is actually proven and sound. Hell, it got Packard through the Depression. (Packard died not because of business strategy but because of really horrifically badly conceived and badly timed design decisions, something that Apple doesn’t seem to do.)
IOW they skim off the cream and say screw you to the peasants
Not quite. That would be true if they only produced Mac Pros and MacBook Pros (i.e., the Peerless Motor business plan.)
No, they do everything BUT entry-level/bargain-basement. They have low-midrange, midrange, and high end.
Note that Sony and Pioneer don’t compete in the bargain basement arena any more either - doing so is a great way to lose your brand equity. Colt also discovered that the bargain basement pistol idea wasn’t so great for their brand. Jaguar went into the entry-level luxury market, and it’s dragged down their entire brand.
No Macbook is low mid-range
High end Windows laptop start at $999 which is where Apple laptops begin
...
No, high end Windows laptop/workstations *start* at $2K. Not $1K.
$1K is solidly midrange.
Apple will be forced to dump it’s absurd 13”/$999 laptops the same way these lobster men were forced to dump lobsters at $4 a piece. Luxury items are doing poorly right now
http://www.timesrecord.com/website/main.nsf/news.nsf/0/D8E56302F28282C6852574E9005A5B3C?Opendocument
We’ll see how Christmas goes. I think you’re going to be proven very, very, very wrong.
In addition, while nobody needs lobster, most everyone needs a computer for one reason or another.
I haven’t eaten lobster (sea bugs) for years. But I buy computers. :D
Do you avoid lobster becasue it isn’t kosher?
No, I avoid lobster because I dislike eating insects. :P
It is an insect. Is that the real reason for not eating it? Are shrimps insects too? Crawfish? Steve Jobs says he is a piscatarian
Heh, nice try - Jobs is a vegetarian. (I’m not.)
I don’t eat shrimp or “mud bugs” aka crawdads either.
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