apple inc. analysis

When it comes to electronics, Apple is a multinational powerhouse. The company's ability to manufacture and sell revolutionary technical goods and services has enabled it to remain at the top. Thus, the aim of this paper is to carefully examine Apple Inc. and review the company's market and financial results between January 1st, 2015 and December 31st, 2016.

Management Issues and Management Discussions

Apple's board, like every other multinational corporation, is dealing with several issues. Concerns vary from rivalry to the company's ability to update the operating system for all of its platforms. Apple's market share in the early years is now diminishing. For example, in 2014, the number of consumers who bought a non-iPhone mobile device stood at 1 Billion while in 2015, the number rose to 1.2 Billion. Reduction in the sales volumes of the iPhone also remains to be a challenge to Apple. Its management, during the Second Quarter earnings report of 2016 emphasized on how the effects of the global economic trend had negatively affected the consumers purchasing power hence the decline in sales. Other associated management topics that Apple as a company has to deal with include the proper management of a workforce that strives to produce products that are in demand globally.

Financial and Business Performance

In order to analyze the actual performance of a business, figures are keenly checked. Neely (2003) stated that during the first level of analyzing a company, “some aspects of performance are captured in the balance sheet and the earnings values” (p.12). Its financial and business performance, over the years however has been on the rise-judging by the revenue earned. For instance, in January 2015, for the financial year ended on 31st December2016, the company posted a revenue of 74.6 Billion dollars. In 2017, as per the company’s financial year results of the year ended 31st December 2016, the revenue had risen to 78.4 Billion dollars while in the preceding year, the figure stood at 75.9 Billion dollars. Its fiscal reporting of the year 2015 showed that the company’s value per diluted share remained at $3.06 while in the previous period was at $2.07. Presently, the number is at $3.36. As its CEO, Luca Maestri pointed out, the company’s operating cash flow is at 27 Billion dollars. In addition, the company returned about 15 Billion dollars to investors such as its shareholders. For the two years under analysis therefore, it can be noted that the sequential change in revenue for Apple stands at 67% on average.

The business performance of Apple is not so bad either. From its product range, the iPhone recorded the largest share of units sold at around 78,290. Closely following was the iPad at 13,081 units sold. The Mac had the least number of units sold at 5,374 units. Apple is trying to minimize its losses from 2015 to 2017. For example, its amortization and depreciation expense during the year of 2015 was at 11.26 Billion dollars. The company strived to make this figure go down and in 2016 it lowered to about 10.51 Billion dollars. In the year 2017, the figure had sh0t down to about 10.16 Billion dollars.

The reasons for choosing Apple is because for a company of such a magnitude, it is always led by a strategic plan. This means that its way of business is always straight forward and goal oriented. For example, its fiscal 2015 second quarter guide stipulated a tax rate of 26.3 %. The aims and objectives of the paper is to keenly and thoroughly understand the ways in which global giants such as Apple stay at the top of the game. In addition, the research offers one insightful knowledge about the day to day running of an enterprise whether small, medium or large. The overall research approach is one of a quantitative study in which figures were compared and an actual analysis derived from them.

Conclusion

Apple is a market dominant enterprise with a solid market presence. With continued habits, it is evident that its business will continue to blossom. However, in order to avoid being left behind by competitors such as Google, the company needs to address its weaknesses such as the drop in sales.

Reference

Hoover J (2017). Apple Reports Record First Quarter Results. [Online] (updated 2017) Available at: https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2015/01/27Apple-Reports-Record-First-Quarter-Results/ [Accessed Nov. 10, 2017]

Huguet K (2017). Apple Reports Record First Quarter Results. [Online] (updated 2017) Available at: https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2017/01/apple-reports-record-first-quarter-results/.html [Accessed Nov. 10,2017]

Neely A (2003). Business Performance Measurement: Theory and Practice. Cambridge University Press