Apple Inc. (AAPL): The Data Behind The Slowdown

Apple’s premium products have to compete with Samsung’s enormous portfolio of smartphones that dominate the emerging markets which makes it difficult for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to maintain its global market share. Samsung’s market share in the smartphone arena has now risen to record levels of 33% whereas Apple’s has shrunk from 22.8% in Q1-2012 to 17.9% in Q1-2013. In essence, every third smartphone on the planet now is made by SAMSUNG ELECT LTD(F) (NASDAQOTH:SSNLF). The business is now gearing up for the release of its flagship phone Galaxy S4 and if it could overcome the supply side issues it is facing then its investors might very well be in for another strong quarter.

However, the company’s revenue growth is also showing signs of weariness. In the first quarter of 2013, its total sales stood at $47.8 billion showing a growth of 16.8% as opposed to a growth of 22.4% in the same quarter last year.

In the last six months, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s shares have plummeted by 30%. On the other hand, the shares of Samsung Electronics have risen by 14% in the corresponding period on the Korean stock exchange. It will be interesting to see where these two stocks go from here.

The article The Numbers Behind Apple’s Sluggish Growth originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Sarfaraz Khan.

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