UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 FORM 10-K (Mark One) ☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the fiscal year ended September 29, 2018 or ☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the transition period from to Commission File Number: 001-36743 Apple Inc. (Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter) California 94-2404110 (State or other jurisdiction (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) of incorporation or organization) One Apple Park Way Cupertino, California 95014 (Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code) (408) 996-1010 (Registrant’s telephone number, including area code) Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act: Common Stock, $0.00001 par value per share The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC 1.000% Notes due 2022 New York Stock Exchange LLC 1.375% Notes due 2024 New York Stock Exchange LLC 0.875% Notes due 2025 New York Stock Exchange LLC 1.625% Notes due 2026 New York Stock Exchange LLC 2.000% Notes due 2027 New York Stock Exchange LLC 1.375% Notes due 2029 New York Stock Exchange LLC 3.050% Notes due 2029 New York Stock Exchange LLC 3.600% Notes due 2042 New York Stock Exchange LLC (Title of each class) (Name of each exchange on which registered) Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None Indicate by check mark if the Registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☒ No ☐ Indicate by check mark if the Registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒ Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐ Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes ☒ No ☐ Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§229.405 of this chapter) is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of the Registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10- K. ☒ Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. Large accelerated filer ☒ Accelerated filer ☐ Non-accelerated filer ☐ Smaller reporting company ☐ Emerging growth company ☐ If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the Registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐ Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes ☐ No ☒ The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting stock held by non-affiliates of the Registrant, as of March 30, 2018 , the last business day of the Registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, was approximately $828,880,000,000 . Solely for purposes of this disclosure, shares of common stock held by executive officers and directors of the Registrant as of such date have been excluded because such persons may be deemed to be affiliates. This determination of executive officers and directors as affiliates is not necessarily a conclusive determination for any other purposes. 4,745,398,000 shares of common stock were issued and outstanding as of October 26, 2018 . DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE Portions of the Registrant’s definitive proxy statement relating to its 2019 annual meeting of shareholders (the “ 2019 Proxy Statement”) are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Annual Report on Form 10-K where indicated. The 2019 Proxy Statement will be filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission within 120 days after the end of the fiscal year to which this report relates. Apple Inc. Form 10-K For the Fiscal Year Ended September 29, 2018 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Part I Item 1. Business 1 Item 1A. Risk Factors 8 Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments 17 Item 2. Properties 18 Item 3. Legal Proceedings 18 Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures 18 Part II Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities 19 Item 6. Selected Financial Data 21 Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations 22 Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk 35 Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data 37 Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure 67 Item 9A. Controls and Procedures 67 Item 9B. Other Information 67 Part III Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance 68 Item 11. Executive Compensation 68 Item 12 . Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters 68 Item 13 . Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence 68 Item 14. Principal Accounting Fees and Services 68 Part IV Item 15. Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules 69 Item 16. Form 10-K Summary 71 This Annual Report on Form 10-K (“Form 10-K”) contains forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, that involve risks and uncertainties. Many of the forward-looking statements are located in Part II, Item 7 of this Form 10-K under the heading “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” Forward-looking statements provide current expectations of future events based on certain assumptions and include any statement that does not directly relate to any historical or current fact. Forward-looking statements can also be identified by words such as “future,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “predicts,” “will,” “would,” “could,” “can,” “may,” and similar terms. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and the Company’s actual results may differ significantly from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed in Part I, Item 1A of this Form 10-K under the heading “Risk Factors,” which are incorporated herein by reference. All information presented herein is based on the Company’s fiscal calendar. Unless otherwise stated, references to particular years, quarters, months or periods refer to the Company’s fiscal years ended in September and the associated quarters, months and periods of those fiscal years. Each of the terms the “Company” and “Apple” as used herein refers collectively to Apple Inc. and its wholly- owned subsidiaries, unless otherwise stated. The Company assumes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements for any reason, except as required by law. PART I Item 1. Business Company Background The Company designs, manufactures and markets mobile communication and media devices and personal computers, and sells a variety of related software, services, accessories and third-party digital content and applications. The Company’s products and services include iPhone ® , iPad ® , Mac ® , Apple Watch ® , AirPods ® , Apple TV ® , HomePod™, a portfolio of consumer and professional software applications, iOS, macOS ® , watchOS ® and tvOS™ operating systems, iCloud ® , Apple Pay ® and a variety of other accessory, service and support offerings. The Company sells and delivers digital content and applications through the iTunes Store ® , App Store ® , Mac App Store, TV App Store, Book Store and Apple Music ® (collectively “Digital Content and Services”). The Company sells its products worldwide through its retail stores, online stores and direct sales force, as well as through third-party cellular network carriers, wholesalers, retailers and resellers. In addition, the Company sells a variety of third-party Apple-compatible products, including application software and various accessories, through its retail and online stores. The Company sells to consumers, small and mid-sized businesses and education, enterprise and government customers. The Company’s fiscal year is the 52- or 53-week period that ends on the last Saturday of September. The Company is a California corporation established in 1977. Business Strategy The Company is committed to bringing the best user experience to its customers through its innovative hardware, software and services. The Company’s business strategy leverages its unique ability to design and develop its own operating systems, hardware, application software and services to provide its customers products and solutions with innovative design, superior ease-of-use and seamless integration. As part of its strategy, the Company continues to expand its platform for the discovery and delivery of digital content and applications through its Digital Content and Services, which allows customers to discover and download or stream digital content, iOS, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple TV applications, and books through either a Mac or Windows personal computer or through iPhone, iPad and iPod touch ® devices (“iOS devices”), Apple TV, Apple Watch and HomePod.