Apple beats estimates with record holiday quarter sales
Apple reported record sales in the holiday quarter, beating estimates as it benefited from high iPhone demand in China and withstood constraints caused by supply chain disruptions and the Omicron variant.
Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, had warned in October that chip shortages were affecting the manufacturing of most Apple products and could lead to over $6bn in lost sales. But on Thursday, the company celebrated a successful quarter in a call with investors.
“Despite the uncertainty of the world, there is one thing of which I am certain: Apple will continue to improve every day and in every way to deliver on the promise of technology at its best,” he said.
Reporting its first quarter earnings of 2022, the company said that it made $123.9bn, 11% up from last year and higher than analysts’ average estimate of $118.7bn
Executives attributed the strong quarter to the success of its products, reporting record holiday iPhone sales in late 2021.
“The very strong customer response to our recent launch of new products and services drove double-digit growth in revenue and earnings, and helped set an all-time high for our installed base of active devices,” said Luca Maestri, Apple’s CFO.
Analysts had anticipated a “blockbuster” quarter with record revenues, but such high expectations were tampered by ongoing supply chain problems.
Apple also faces setbacks in the form of ongoing Covid-19 concerns. The surge of the Omicron variant forced the company to close down a number of Apple stores as well as corporate offices.
Antitrust legislation is also spelling trouble for the company, as CEO Tim Cook continues to aggressively lobby against a number of new antitrust bills.
Under one such bill, introduced by Senator Amy Klobuchar, competing app stores
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