What's Going on With Apple?

You may have already heard that Apple is going through a bit of a rut right now. And in case you were wondering, this is what a "rut" looks like for the tech giant:

Apple’s shares continued their downward descent Thursday as the company announced poor quarterly results. Analysts believe this signals a slowdown for the company.

“Late Wednesday, Apple reported October-December earnings that were flat compared with the year before. Sales grew 18 percent from the year before, but the startup of production lines for multiple new products like the iPhone 5 and iPad Mini held back profits,” the Associated Press notes.

“Of more concern to investors is Apple sales growth forecast for the current quarter of around 7 percent -- far from the 50-percent-plus rate it's often hit in recent years. Apple usually lowballs its forecasts, but Chief Financial Officer Peter Oppenheimer indicated that it's moving toward providing more realistic figures from now on,” the report adds.

The stock was down $53.55 or 10 percent, at $460.46 in midday trading.

Still, despite its disappointing quarterly and a decline in share value, it’s worth noting Apple Inc. is still the world's most valuable company -- even more valuable than oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp.

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Featured image courtesy Robert Caplin/Bloomberg News.