Why is Apple still more efficient than Meta despite not laying off workers?

Apple AAPL -0.95% looks more and more like an outlier with each major layoff announcement in the technology sector. Despite companies such as Meta Platforms META-0.13% laying out plans to lay off tens of thousands of employees, Apple has not made any major layoffs during the past year. The reason for this can be explained by one metric in particular. 

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The revenue generated by Apple (ticker: AAPL) has consistently been the highest among the major U.S. technology companies based on the number of employees it has.

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During Apple's most recent fiscal year, the company generated around $2.4 million in revenue per employee, according to FactSet, and has averaged around $2.1 million per employee for the last five years, which is slightly higher than the industry average.

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That far exceeds the revenue generated by Facebook-owned Meta (META), which generated $1.35 million in revenue per employee in 2022, which was lower than its five-year average of $1.5 million per employee. On this same metric, Apple consistently beats Amazon AMZN -0.83% (AMZN), Microsoft MSFT +0.90% (MSFT), and Alphabet's parent company, Google, GOOG -0.51% (GOOG), all of which have announced major layoffs within the past few months. 

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Due to Apple's relatively conservative hiring policy, it does not have to slash jobs now, despite expectations of revenue declining this year as well.

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“Apple did not hire aggressively during the pandemic, and as a result, it was not required to undergo extensive headcount reductions, unlike some peers,” analysts at Evercore wrote in a report last week. “We continue to believe that Apple's relevant peer group for the long term will be those companies in the consumer staples sector and/or those with high-end luxury goods." 

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The latest job cut announcement by Meta aims to make it more efficient, but it won't match Apple's job cuts of 11,000 so far.

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Based on consensus revenue projections and planned headcount reductions, Trade Algo predicts that Meta's revenue per employee will reach $1.85 million by 2023, a 55% increase over the current year. On the basis of a FactSet consensus for Apple's estimated annual revenue and its headcount of approximately 164,000 as of September last year, it is estimated that the company's revenue per employee for the current fiscal year will be close to $2.4 million.

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There is a possibility that the figures might not be completely comparable, depending on whether the companies filled any open positions and how Apple's headcount has changed since its last report on its financial performance.

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Despite its lack of layoffs, Apple is trying to control its costs. Trade Algo reported Tuesday that the company is limiting hiring, delaying some bonuses, and reducing travel budgets. Shares of Apple fell 0.3% in premarket trading Wednesday.