APPLE ENDS YEARLONG SALES SLUMP WITH SLIGHT REVENUE RISE IN HOLIDAY-SEASON PERIOD BUT STOCK SLIPS

Apple snapped out of a yearlong sales funk during its holiday-season quarter, propelled by solid demand for the latest model of its iPhone and still-robust growth in a services division facing legal threats that could undermine its prospects.

The modest revenue growth announced last week as part of Apple’s October-December results ended four consecutive quarters of year-over-year sales declines. But the performance still may not be enough to allay recent investor concerns about Apple’s ability to rebuild the momentum that established it as the most valuable U.S. publicly traded company.

After years of holding that mantle, Apple recently ceded the top spot to its long-time rival Microsoft, which has been elevated largely through its early leadership in artificial intelligence technology.

Apple is hoping to shift the narrative back in its favor with the release of its Vision Pro headset that transports users into a hybrid of physical and digital environments — a combination the company is promoting as “spatial computing.” But the first version of the Vision Pro will cost $3,500 — a lofty price tag analysts expect to constrain demand this year.

“We are optimistic about the future, confident in the long term, and excited as we have ever been,” Apple CEO Tim Cook assured analysts during a conference call about the latest quarterly results.