Stale iOS Devices Mean Declining Fortunes For A Key Apple Supplier
May 3, 2013
Laird PLC, which provides electromagnetic shield and heat control components for wireless devices, is reporting falling revenue from their largest customer, widely assumed to be Apple. This suggests slipping demand for iOS devices, according to Reuters.
For the recently completed quarter, Laird PLC says that revenue from their largest customer fell 17 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier. This resulted in an overall fall in revenue of 2 percent.
Laird PLC didn’t specify that Apple was their largest customer. However, analysts said Laird has confirmed in the past that their top customer is, in fact, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company.
The company said that they expect to see declining revenues in the second quarter as well, before things improve in the second half of the year.
According to Dominic Convey, an analyst at Peel Hunt:
I think it's become clear that there had been a overbuild through Q4 by the said largest customer and I think therefore as we got into Q1 the general weakness was exacerbated by destocking cycle.Apple hasn’t announced a new iOS device since October. Therefore, it doesn’t come as a surprise that suppliers are seeing slowing revenue for component parts. That should change as early as next month when Apple hosts the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). At this event, the company could announce next-generation iOS devices including the so-called "iPhone 5S," and second-generation iPad mini.