Following its unexpectedly disappointing fiscal first quarter results, Apple today reported second-quarter 2019 revenues of $58 billion, a 5% year-over-year decline, offset by record high services revenue of $11.5 billion. The total number was slightly above analysts’ consensus estimates of $57.4 billion, and in the middle of Apple’s $55 to $59 billion guidance range.
During the quarter, Apple says, it sold $31.05 billion in iPhones, $5.5 billion in Macs, $4.87 billion in iPads, and nearly $5.13 billion in combined wearables and accessories. The iPhone and Mac numbers are both down from the comparable second quarter of 2018 despite atypically aggressive marketing efforts, but the iPad and wearable/accessory categories both showed marked dollar value growth over the year-ago quarter. Unfortunately, the company no longer provides unit sales for its product lines.
International results were mixed. While net sales were up slightly year-over-year in the Americas and Japan, they were down in Europe, China, and the rest of the Asia-Pacific region. In total, international sales accounted for 61% of the company’s quarterly revenue.
The $58 billion total figure fell from the $61.1 billion Apple took in during the year ago quarter, making this the second consecutive quarter of year-over-year declines for the huge and previously growing company. Apple CEO Tim Cook notes, however, that services revenue was up sharply — around 16% from a year ago — and that the iPad experienced its strongest growth in six years.
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Our March quarter results show the continued strength of our installed base of over 1.4 billion active devices, as we set an all-time record for Services, and the strong momentum of our Wearables, Home and Accessories category, which set a new March quarter record. We delivered our strongest iPad growth in six years, and we are as excited as ever about our pipeline of innovative hardware, software and services. We’re looking forward to sharing more with developers and customers at Apple’s 30th annual Worldwide Developers Conference in June.
Apple notably slashed its fiscal first quarter 2019 earnings forecast in January before announcing holiday quarter revenues of $84.3 billion, down from $88.3 billion one year before. At the time, the company attributed the downturn to expected sales shortfalls in China, unfavorable exchange rates — primarily in developing countries — and longer iPhone replacement cycles, which it suggested were extended by a battery replacement program. Certain iPhone models saw multiple targeted price drops before across-the-board reductions based partially on lower Chinese tax rates.
Today, Apple is guiding third-quarter 2019 revenue between $52.5 billion and $54.5 billion, which would be roughly flat compared with last year’s third quarter, without any change to its typical 37-38% gross margin. To reward potentially concerned investors, the company is upping its dividend by 5% to 77 cents per share of stock, and is announcing a $75 billion share repurchase program. Further details on the results will be forthcoming in a quarterly earnings call, which we’ll be covering live.
