It has almost been a decade since the very first iPhone was released to the market. It innovated the way a cell phone worked and what it could do. As such, consumers lapped it up and the Apple era was born. But since then, other competitors have caught up and have created their own innovations as well. Apple's sales have been declining and its just is not the investment it once was.
According to CNBC, investors are expected to start selling their Apple shares soon, mainly because users are likely not to upgrade to the iPhone 7 this year. The publication quotes BGC's Colin Gillis as saying, "Our opinion [is] that Apple has peaked under the leadership of CEO Tim Cook."
Gillis went on to explain that he expects the cycle of the iPhone 7 to slow even more than the iPhone 6s. As such, he lowered his price target for Apple from $110 to $85, a 14 percent decline from Friday's numbers. And while Apple's other products are doing fine, he also points out the lack of new devices.
During "the maturation of the smartphone market," where Apple's competitors caught up, the company had 5 years worth of time to create a new product. And yet, in that time frame, they only released the Apple Watch.
As Quartz adds, Apple experienced its first decline in iPhone units last quarter. So while the company is set to finally reach a billion units sold, it does not at all mean that the future is looking bright. In fact, Apple is likely to announce soon that this year's figures are lackluster in comparison to last year's.
Unfortunately, a large chunk of Apple's revenue comes from iPhone sales. And with the current trend, Apple needs to put things into gear in order to bounce back. One route Apple is expected to take is to focus more on its business arm. That is, of course, its plethora of apps in the App Store, iTunes, Apple Pay, etc. By satisfying customers with these products, Apple can lock them in, thereby ensuring future sales.
