Apple's Earnings in a Nutshell

On January 23, Apple published its results for the December quarter (Apple’s Q1 2013). The Cupertino-based company posted record iPhone and iPad sales (48m and 23m units), better-than-ever revenue ($54.5b) and a sizeable $12 billion profit. Great news for Apple’s shareholders, right?

Not exactly. Despite the results being indisputably good, they were not great. And so, as analysts and investors are expecting nothing less than great from Apple, the company missed expectations on several points. More importantly though, the results did little to silence those who say that Apple has peaked, and that its potential for future growth is waning.

Both revenue and profit growth have decelerated significantly as Apple narrowly avoided the first year-over-year decline of its quarterly profits. Apple is struggling to maintain its extraordinary margins, as the competition in the booming smartphone and tablet markets is increasingly fierce.

Apple’s stock price lost 10 percent in Wednesday’s after-hours trading, shaving $50 billion off the company’s market cap. The company that used to be one of Wall Street’s darlings in the past few years will probably need another revolutionary device (such as an Apple TV) to bring its stock back into an upward trajectory.