By Eric J. Savitz
Apple reported disappointing financial results for its fiscal fourth quarter ended September 30, as sales of iPhones failed to match Wall Street estimates. The stock is losing ground in late trading Thursday.
For the quarter, $Apple(AAPL.US)$ posted revenue of $83.4 billion, up 29% from the year ago quarter, and shy of the Street consensus at $84.9 billion. Profits were $1.24 a share, in line with estimates.
The company had warned one quarter earlier that component shortage could affect some product categories in the quarter, and that may have played a factor in results.
Sales of iPhones were $38.9 billion, up 47% from a year ago, but shy of the Wall Street consensus at $41.2 billion. And iPad sales were up 21% to $8.3 billion but still below the consensus of $8.8 billion. Mac sales in the quarter were $9.2 billion, up 2%, and just above the Street's $9.1 billion. Wearable revenues also came in light, at $8.8 billion, below the Street at $9.4 billion. Overall product revenues were $65.1 billion, up 29.8%.
Services revenue was a bright spot, at $18.3 billion, up 26% from a year ago, and ahead of the consensus at $17.7 billion.
"Our record September quarter results capped off a remarkable fiscal year of strong double-digit growth, during which we set new revenue records in all of our geographic segments and product categories in spite of continued uncertainty in the macro environment," Apple chief financial officer Luca Maestri said in a statement. "The combination of our record sales performance, unmatched customer loyalty, and strength of our ecosystem drove our active installed base of devices to a new all-time high."
Apple chief financial officer Luca Maestri noted that the company returned $24 billion to shareholders in the quarter in the form of dividends and stock buybacks.
By geography, revenues were up 20% in the Americas, 23% in Europe, 83% in Greater China, 19% in Japan and 26% in the rest of Asia Pacific.
For the full fiscal year, the company had revenue of $365.8 billion, up 33.3%, with profits of $5.61 a share, up from $3.28 a year ago.
The company did not provide any financial guidance in the earnings press release, but is likely to provide some comments on the outlook on its investor call.
Apple shares are down 4% in late trading, to $146.41.