Apple registers double-digit growth, all-time record revenue of $111.4 billion

Cupertino-based Apple registered an exceptionally strong Q1 2021 quarter with an all-time revenue record of $111.4 billion. Apple's product revenue was an all-time record of $95.7 billion, up 21 per cent over a year ago. And services set an all-time record of $15.8 billion growing 24 per cent year-over-year. Along with double-digit growth across every product category, the company achieved all-time revenue records in each of the geographic segments. "We hit a new high watermark for our installed base of active devices with growth accelerating as we passed 1.65 billion devices worldwide during the December quarter," said Apple CEO Tim Cook during the earning's call.

Driven by strong demand for the recently launched iPhone 12 models, iPhone grew by 17 per cent year over year, with Apple's active installed base of iPhones over 1 billion. According to Canalys, Apple shipped its most iPhones ever in a single quarter, at 81.8 million units, up 4 per cent against the previous year in the said quarter. Apple's iPhone 12 series was a hit despite all the leaks and apprehensions.

"Apple is better positioned than its competitors on 5G, being heavily skewed towards developed markets, and mobile operator sales channels. But it also made savvy moves behind the scenes to propel its sales and profitability. The omission of a power plug from the iPhone retail box, which reduces weight and size, is making logistics significantly more efficient, amid the ongoing high cost of air freight due to the pandemic. And it also implemented channel-centric growth initiatives to target SMB customers, which have bolstered demand for its entire range of iPhones," explains Canalys Analyst Vincent Thielke.

As computing devices were in demand due to work from home, study from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, Apple's computing category too registered good growth. iPad and Mac grew by 41 per cent and 21 per cent, respectively. During this quarter, the new iPad Air, as well as the first generation of Macs featuring M1 chip went on sale, for which there has been a strong demand. "Wearables, home, and accessories grew by 30 per cent year over year, driven by significant holiday demand for the latest Apple Watch, our entire air pods lineup, including the new AirPods Max, as well as the new HomePod mini this broad strength across the category led to new revenue records for each of its three subgroups," adds Cook.

Not just the hardware, services business too has been growing for the company. The company recorded $15.8 billion from services, growing 24 per cent year-over-year, in App Store, cloud services, music, advertising, AppleCare, and payment services. The new service offerings, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, Apple Card, Apple Fitness+, as well as the Apple One bundle, also contributed to overall services growth and continue to add users content and features.

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