CHART OF THE DAY: Apple's Disappointing Quarter In Context

The sentiment around Apple has gotten so negative, you can forget how amazing the company is actually doing. This chart from Statista puts it in context.

Apple was the most profitable company in the world last quarter. In terms of tech companies, it's more than twice as profitable as the nearest competitor, Microsoft.

That last one is a telling comparison, though. It's not all about profits. It's about future growth, and future products. Microsoft has always been an insanely profitable company. It's been left for dead by investors and the cool kids in Silicon Valley because it whiffed on mobile.

Apple hasn't whiffed on the next big thing. But there seems to be a fear that it's not going to nail the next big thing. (Or, perhaps more reasonably, the next big thing won't be as profitable as the iPhone.)

So, even though Apple had gigantic profits last quarter, the stock is still down. But, still, they are seriously gigantic profits.