Apple shares are tumbling Wednesday, down as much as 5.6% to $94.39, after a disappointing earnings report has investors worried that the iPhone maker’s high-flying days are losing altitude.
Apple reported fourth-quarter revenue Tuesday that missed expectations and warned that it could post its first revenue decline since the 2009 recession. Apple expects sales between $50 billion and $53 billion in the first quarter, down from last year’s $58 billion for a 14% drop year over year.
That’s a lot of bad news even though Apple posted sales that set a new company record—$75.9 billion in the fourth quarter. The catch is that the sales growth, 1.7% year over year, was the lowest since the middle of 2013. Analysts were expecting sales of $76.5 billion.
The disappointing figures represent a core problem for Apple (AAPL). The high-end smartphone market has become saturated, and analysts have warned that this will drag down Apple’s overall growth. Sales for iPhones last quarter were flat despite its September debut of the new iPhone 6s.
