Apple reported fiscal fourth-quarter results surpassing Wall Street estimates on Thursday. However, extended trading saw a two per cent dip due to the tax change, which dented Apple’s net income for the quarter ending 28 September.
The Tame Apple press rushed to say there was nothing to see as the company’s core earnings and revenue exceeded expectations.
The tech giant reported adjusted earnings per share at $1.64, edging out the forecast of $1.60, with total revenue at $94.93 billion, slightly above the predicted $94.58 billion.
Sales of Apple’s cash cow iPhone, which makes up nearly half of its revenue, rose by six per cent, amounting to $46.22 billion, as Apple recorded the first week of iPhone 16 sales within this quarter.
CEO Tim Cook claimed: “Sales of the iPhone 15 were stronger than 14 in the year-ago quarter, and 16 was stronger than 15,” providing an encouraging sign of the latest model’s market impact.
Cook claimed early adoption rates for Apple Intelligence, which is currently being rolled out as part of the iOS 18.1 update on iPhones and Macs, looked promising. Cook shared that “users are adopting iOS 18.1 at twice the rate that they adopted 17.1 in the year-ago quarter.”
For the coming holiday quarter, Apple projected “low to mid-single digit” sales growth, with its high-margin services segment expected to maintain its growth pace of around 13 per cent.
This segment, which includes iCloud, AppleCare, and third-party app revenue, generated $24.97 billion in revenue but fell just short of analysts' forecasts.
Apple also reported $14.73 billion in net income, or 97 cents per share, down significantly from the previous year’s $22.96 billion. However, after adjusting for the tax charge, Apple’s earnings per share saw a 12 per cent year-on-year rise.
Other hardware segments showed mixed results. iPad sales grew eight per cent to $6.95 billion, boosted by pent-up demand after the delayed release of the new iPad Pro and Air models earlier this year. Mac revenue grew by two per cent to $7.74 billion, with back-to-school sales of the updated MacBook Air driving performance.
Apple’s results conclude a high-stakes week for tech giants, with Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta also releasing results. Apple’s cash reserve now stands at $156.65 billion.