Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Apple Reports Best Quarter Ever in Q1 2012: $13.06 Billion Profit on $46.33 Billion in Revenue

Nostromo - I think your perspective is way out in space.

The growth of Chinese capitalism is improving the standard of living in that huge country. No small feat coming from years of communism - it is a good thing that is happening.

America has become bloated with an entitlement mentality and corporate structures that are not as responsive as in other parts of the world - our borrow so we can spend and live an artificially supported standard of living party is over.

You can keep your rants going all the way to the poor house - it is a single planet, a global economy, and America is falling further and further behind in math and science and work ethic. We either change or become less relevant.

Apple has the formula right - I applaud them for it.
 
*LTD* said:
Many consumers don't think so. We're willing to pay more for a better value proposition.

What does Apple's success communicate to the consumer who spent their hard-earned dollars on an Apple product?

They can rest assured that their money has been well-spent with a robust ecosystem that is built to last, and which will see plenty of strong support years down the road. In contrast to folks who got hosed (or even scammed) with TouchPads, Windows Slates, JooJoo whatevers, and even Playbooks.

I'd rather pay a little more than throw money down the toilet.
Click to expand...

Bravo! Well said!
 
Nostromo said:
One reason why profits are so high:

Apple products are produced under almost slave-labor conditions. Nets have to be hung underneath the windows of Fox-Conn workers, as their living conditions are so bad that so many of them killed themselves. And those were Chinese workers who were not used to anything close to US work conditions.

Also, Apple is a champion in exporting manufacturing jobs. About 700 000 jobs outside the US versus 50 000 inside.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/b...d-a-squeezed-middle-class.html?pagewanted=all

Those of you who applaud the record profits should also know about the price it comes at: lost jobs in the US, and slave labor in China.

But there are enough fools who just applaud anything Apple does. Until they lose their job and cannot afford the new iPhone.

Because, even though produced by people who earn very, very little, sleep in dormitories, and have no human rights (at least not many more than in a gulag), the price for an iPhone is very high.

So, reckless behavior supported Apple's super success as much as the creation of great products.

But as long as Apple fans bend over for everything Apple does, Apple will not change its ways.

Obama, in today's speech to the state of the nation, has addressed the loss of manufacturing jobs through reckless corporations. But he also said that, as the Chinese won't take it any longer, and production costs are rising in China, production jobs are starting to come back. And that it is nonsense to say you can't manufacture in the US (high tech and cars proved Obama right).

So, I'd like to see a little bit more reflection here instead of the brainless adoration of quarterly results.
Click to expand...

Why the US lost those jobs...and it's not just "slave labor". And if you were to refuse to buy products based on moral grounds of how they are produced...good luck buying clothes or a smartphone :)

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/b...d-a-squeezed-middle-class.html?pagewanted=all
 
Kind of makes you think Apple held out on the 4S on purpose just for this reason. People held out for the 4S and while they held out, pint up demand skyrocketed. People who weren't even thinking of buying an iPhone had no choice but to hear about the new iPhone "5" coming out, so they waited as well. Even though it wasn't the "5", they bought it anyway because it was still considered the best of the best. The holidays only took it to another level.

These are amazing numbers from a company whose plans are always well though out.
 
Rennir said:
Why the US lost those jobs...and it's not just "slave labor". And if you were to refuse to buy products based on moral grounds of how they are produced...good luck buying clothes or a smartphone :)

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/b...d-a-squeezed-middle-class.html?pagewanted=all
Click to expand...

He obviously didn't read the Times article.

----------
cameronjpu said:
Obama doesn't make any laws. What he says in the state of the union matters not one bit.
Click to expand...

His speak is a waste of oxygen.
 
cameronjpu said:
What does "net cpu" "net iphone" "net ipad" mean in the chart?

Sales are sales. There is nothing subtracted from those sales numbers to call them "net"
Click to expand...

I think gross sales are sales to their points of sale, ie pushed to the stores to sell. Net sales are actual sales that get into the final customers hands. Well right or wrong that's how I see it.
 
iMikeT said:
Looks like tomorrow will be a good day for AAPL.
Click to expand...

You've got to be joking, right ? Your inexperience with AAPL equities is quite clear. You are assuming that what Apple does is reflected in the sharemarket, which shows you have not been following them for long. After an almost 40% outperformance, look for the price to gap up - much less than 40% of course - and then drop tomorrow as the professional traders "sell off" (which reduces the share prices).

Indeed, even if you've only been at this a little while, you noticed the over 1.5% drop in AAPL price today just prior to earnings ? Sometimes life isn't fair, and anyone who believes the Market is a Rational "weighing tool" is a buffoon.
 
cirus said:
I understand (also referring to LTD) that they have a responsibility to shareholders to maximize profits. I am just asking a simple yes or no question.
I just cannot understand how people can curse some companies for making high profits (oil companies) yet praise others.

LTD, I was simply saying that the money that goes to Apple is doing almost nothing for the US economy, half of it is out of country and the rest sits in banks. If some of the money was being spent at small businesses would that be better? (I'm just saying that the money that apple makes does very little for the economy--at least for the moment)

Question: Would you prefer if Apple charged 10% less and made only a 20% instead of a 30% profit margin.

In your opinion, yes or no.
Click to expand...

As a consumer, I want the most value for the price I pay. I am getting value for the money I paid for my iPhone. If Apple charged 10% less, I would get more value for a little bit less money. But I made a choice as a consumer to pay the price that I paid for my iPhone.

And your claim that Apple does nothing for the US economy is wrong. Apple has helped the mobile app market grow by leaps and bounds. They've paid out over $2.5 billion to developers. Also, Apple employs tons of people in their retail stores. Whenever Apple builds a new store in the US, that puts money in the pocket of real estate agents, construction firms, and surveyors among others. So Apple provides quite a bit to the US economy.
 
Kudos to a company that loves to make money, but at the same time, care for the quality of the products for consumers....

Amazing numbers!
 
DamenS said:
You've got to be joking, right ? Your inexperience with AAPL equities is quite clear. You are assuming that what Apple does is reflected in the sharemarket, which shows you have not been following them for long. After an almost 40% outperformance, look for the price to gap up - much less than 40% of course - and then drop tomorrow as the professional traders "sell off" (which reduces the share prices).

Indeed, even if you've only been at this a little while, you noticed the over 1.5% drop in AAPL price today just prior to earnings ? Sometimes life isn't fair, and anyone who believes the Market is a Rational "weighing tool" is a buffoon.
Click to expand...


Just because you see a pattern, and that pattern has happened a few times over a period of time does not mean that the same thing is going to happen again this time, or next time.

Humans are a bit too good at seeing patterns and jumping on the bandwagon hoping to see the same pattern again.

Before calling some dude with a simple straight up opinion a "buffoon", you might think over what you are saying and how you are saying it, and look at the monkey in the mirror once in a while. :)

oooo ooooo oooooo eeee eee ahhh ahh! is one thing but

Baaaaah! Baaaaaaah! is another

What if AAPL really goes bananas this morning? What if the guys pulling the strings recognize the buy opportunity and want to take AAPL for the biggest pump and dump ride the world has ever seen? You could see AAPL break $500 by the end of the week. I could happen. The man who pulls the strings says so, so watch for it. They need some big action like this perhaps.

I'd love to see it, so I hope it comes true this time instead of the usual drop.

I think the paid shills who knock down AAPL every time they blow out the estimates are going to have a tough time selling their dumb arguments to the suits this time, so the after hours price you see is just the opener. But just like anyone else, I could be wrong too. (haha - there is a first for everything).
 
Nostromo said:
Apple products are produced under almost slave-labor conditions. Nets have to be hung underneath the windows of Fox-Conn workers, as their living conditions are so bad that so many of them killed themselves. And those were Chinese workers who were not used to anything close to US work conditions.
Click to expand...

The suicide rate among Foxconn employees is about a quarter that of the general population of the USA. But that is just the suicide rate. The school system in the USA is so ********* up that students return to their schools with guns and start shooting random people. The postal service is so bad in that respect, "going postal" is actually a term that entered the language. At McDonald's, about half the number of employees of Foxconn, one employee alone killed about half as many collegues as the total number of suicides at Foxconn.

But since this is in the USA, not China, and it doesn't match up with your prejudices, you close your eyes to that.
 
Rodimus Prime said:
It tells you that the smartphone market is growing at an insane rate big time when you look at the market share and Apple share has not grown as fast to match. They really been sitting around the same point for a while. Those number increases are going to stop at some point but that is because the size of the smartphone market would of stop growing because there is going to be a lack of new customers.

The cell phone market at one point had the insane growth but now look at it. It is not growing much faster than population.
Click to expand...

I LOL'd.
Interesting that I was expecting a punchline, but seeing the avatar there and given its history, something in the back of my head kept rather at "oh man, he might be saying it for real".
Which only converted the LOL in a snort-LOL.

----------
BuddyTronic said:
I think the paid shills who knock down AAPL every time they blow out the estimates are going to have a tough time selling their dumb arguments to the suits this time[...]
Click to expand...

Then they will adview-sell them to bloggers or haters or religious populace ;).
 
Apple Corps said:
Apple's "value" is waaaaaaay beyond the $93 billion you questioned - they have more than that in cash / cash equivalents
Click to expand...

marcusj0015 said:
How is it more? I'm always hearing about them having an $80 Billion war chest, %80 Billion + $13 Billion = $93 billion, right?
Click to expand...

Let's imagine you have to hire someone for your team. There's this one guy without any knowledge of your business, but with a $50 bill in his pocket. On the other side there's this very talented guy who fits exactly the needs of your company, but he only has got a nickle in his pocket. Which one are you going to hire? How much are you willing to pay the two guys?

Or to put it differently: if the value of a company would be equal to their cash, all the companies with debth would be trading below zero dollars a share. :eek:
 
Wow

Apple makes One Hundred Thousand Dollars clear profit every minute of every day. That's impressive!!
 
lkrupp said:
Nobody cares... except perpetually hand wringing socialists who are obsessed with the redistribution of wealth and their screwy notion of economic justice and entitlement. Try reading Rand.:cool:
Click to expand...

Then somebody does care...
 
PCClone said:
He obviously didn't read the Times article.

That is funny I was just thinking the same thing. The NYTimes article was really interesting and it made a point that for a company like Apple there really is nearly no choice. Many companies would have to decide to manufacture many things in the U.S. so that all the facilities were close together. It isn't just the final step where the iPhone is put together that matters. And it would requires millions of additional people working in manufacturing which the U.S. may really not have a large enough population to support and most likely does not have a large enough population capable and willing to do semi-skilled manufacturing jobs. We certainly don't have the skilled engineers necessary to support that endeavor.
Click to expand...
 
Its a shame the iPhone 4s was such a failure... imagine how much they would have grown if that wasn't the case. :)
 
cirus said:
yet they do nothing with that money. its currently in limbo. Yes it is good, but the money spent on apple products could have been spent elsewhere, where in would be going back into the economy and not sit in a big black hole (for now).
Click to expand...

I agree they should do something with that money, in my opinion a dividend to the shareholders. But it is certainly being used. Most likely, Apple mainly buys U.S. treasuries and earns around a 2% return on the investment. The money is then spent by the U.S. government. They don't actually keep the money in a hole, even if kept in a savings account the bank would be putting it to work (again, probably by buying U.S. treasuries).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back