Are Apple sales cooling off? That’s the belief of one Wall Street analyst who tells investors Wednesday the Cupertino, Calif. firm may have seen a 7 percent drop in April sales, compared to a historical increase of nearly 5 percent increase for the third quarter. But when we’re talking about Apple, a “slowdown” needs to be put in some context.
“Despite a weaker than normal April this year, the Apple Barometer (A creation of Ticonderoga Securities tracking trends among Taiwan suppliers) can nearly deliver average sequential sales growth performance in (the second quarter of 2011) versus historical trends,” analyst Brian White writes. The sales slump could be linked to Apple’s blow-out March quarter, when the Cuperino, Calif. company reported a 35 percent jump in sales, beating its usual 24 percent sales increase in that three-month period.
The Barometer has shown several months of triple-digit sales increases. Along with 113 percent growth in April, White estimated 141 percent sales increase for March, 172 percent hike in February and a 150 percent jump in January.
Why does the analyst track Taiwan suppliers as an indication of Apple sales? Apple orders contribute between 50 and 60 percent of that nation’s supply chain, reports say. As for the upcoming June financial quarter, Apple has issued an outlook indicating a 7 percent drop in sales, down from the 5 percent increase that traditionally appears for that three-month period.
