Apple's inventory jumps 154% to $14.54 billion as Ternus calls memory pricing unprecedented
Apple guided December-quarter gross margin to 45% to 46%, down from 47.9%, mostly on memory costs it expects to keep rising, and said purchase obligations rose $33 billion from June to September.
Why it matters
Memory makers are shifting capacity toward AI data-centre chips, and the squeeze is now visible in the accounts of the world's biggest consumer-device maker. Apple stockpiled memory, raised Mac, iPad and iPhone prices earlier this year and still expects margins to fall. Ternus said the benefit of the inventory it carried in will shrink over time, so the next quarters will show how much of the cost reaches device prices.
Key facts
- Inventory: $14.54 billion, up 154.3% from $5.72 billion a year earlier
- December-quarter gross margin guide: 45% to 46%
- September-quarter gross margin: 47.9%
- Purchase obligations up $33 billion, June to September
- Ternus: memory pricing is unprecedented