Apple Inc. delivered record earnings and revenue for its most recent quarter, but sales for its iconic iPhone devices dropped year over year.
In an earnings call Feb. 1, CEO Tim Cook said Apple's flagship $1,000 iPhone X model has been the company's top-selling phone since its November 2017 launch, and has also been the best-selling iPhone worldwide.
"Our team has put the technology of tomorrow in our customers' hands today, set a standard for the next decade of smartphones, and we are very proud of their achievements," he said.
IPhone unit shipments dipped about 1% from the year ago quarter, but revenue for the devices was up, due in part to their higher selling prices.
The company earlier Feb. 1 reported first-quarter 2018 net income of $20.07 billion, or $3.89 per share, compared to net income of $17.89 billion, or $3.36 per share, in the year-ago period. The company reported a one-time $38 billion tax payment on its repatriated cash as a result of recent changes to U.S. tax laws. The S&P Capital IQ consensus estimate for the quarter was $3.85 on a GAAP and normalized basis.
Apple CFO Luca Maestri said the tax reform will enable the company to invest more heavily in U.S. job creation and infrastructure.
"It's really beneficial to the U.S. economy," he said.
Revenue for the quarter ended Dec. 30, 2017, was $88.29 billion, up 13% year over year from $78.35 billion. Looking forward, the company said it expects to report second-quarter 2018 revenue between $60 to $62 billion.
Apple Watch revenue grew over 50% during the quarter, Cook said, and the newest Series 3 model also saw sales gains.
The iPad segment saw new and switching users in China making up 70% of all iPad sales. In Greater China across its products, the company reported revenue growth of about 10% year over year.
