Markets braced for key Apple results as analysts fear peak has been reached

Apple could soon face one of its biggest challenges to date: Peak iPhone. Most analysts believe Apple surpassed its own record by selling more than 74.5 million units of its flagship product in the final three months of 2015. But there are signs that iPhone sales in the first three months of 2016 will — for the first time ever — show an abrupt decline from the same period a year earlier. Apple is expected to report iPhone sales increased slightly more than 1 percent in the holiday quarter when it announces earnings on Tuesday, its slowest growth ever.

Last year was an unprecedented year for Apple and the iPhone…. You’ll never see that type of growth from the iPhone again.

Analyst Angelo Zino at S&P Capital IQ

An estimated 500 million people own iPhones now, which means Apple can rely on a significant number to upgrade each year. But some have put off buying a new model because they didn’t see a strong reason to upgrade. Despite some new features, “people are feeling like there hasn’t been anything that’s really new” in the latest iPhone models, known as the 6S and 6S Plus, which came out last fall, said market researcher John Feland of Argus Insights. Apple will likely make significant changes in the next major iPhone release, expected in September, which could fuel another surge in sales. Some tech blogs have reported a new model might even be coming this spring.

Apple results