X marks the spot
Demand for new iPhones exceeds supply
TECHNOLOGY
SAN FRANCISCO — The iPhone X’s lush screen, facial-recognition skills and $1,000 price tag are breaking new ground in Apple’s marquee product line.
Now, the much-anticipated device is testing the patience of consumers and investors as demand outstrips suppliers’ capacity.
Apple said yesterday that iPhone sales rose 3 percent in the July-September quarter, a period that saw the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus come out in the final weeks. Sales could have been higher if many customers hadn’t been waiting for the iPhone X, which comes out today.
Apple shipped 46.7 million iPhones during the period, according to its fiscal fourth-quarter report released yesterday. That’s up from 45.5 million at the same time last year after the iPhone 7 came out, but represents a step back from the same time in 2015, when Apple shipped 48 million iPhones during the quarter.
All told, Apple earned $10.7 billion on revenue of $52.6 billion, compared with a $9 billion profit on revenue of $46.9 billion a year earlier.
Apple shares were up 3 percent in after-hours trading.
Nonetheless, the justended quarter largely became an afterthought once Apple decided to release the iPhone X six weeks after the iPhone 8.
“The Super Bowl for Apple is the iPhone X,” GBH analyst Daniel Ives said. “That is the potential game changer.”
Yesterday, Apple predicted revenue for this quarter from $84 billion to $87 billion. Analysts, who have already factored in the supply challenges, expected $85.2 billion, according to FactSet.
Analysts are expecting Apple to ship 80 million iPhones during the current quarter, which includes the crucial holiday shopping season, according to FactSet. That would be slightly better than the same time last year.
Analysts are expecting the company to sell 242 million iPhones in the fiscal year ending in September 2018 — the most in the product’s history.