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Apple topped Wall Street’s expectations in its Thursday afternoon earnings report, though the world’s most valuable company reported far weaker full-year profits than a year ago.
Key Facts
Apple beat projections for its top and bottom line performance during the three-month period ending September 30, as its $89.5 billion in total revenue and $1.47 earnings per share were above consensus analyst estimates of $89.3 billion and $1.39 respectively, according to FactSet.
The Silicon Valley giant reported $67.2 billion of product sales ($67.9 billion forecasted), including $43.8 billion of iPhone sales ($43.8 billion forecasted), and $22.3 billion of revenues in its highly profitable services unit ($21.4 billion forecasted).
Though Apple’s quarterly sales were down nearly 6% year-over-year, thanks in part to a 34% decline in Macbook computer sales, its net income grew 11% annually to $23 billion.
Apple said Thursday that it will pay quarterly dividends of $0.24 per share, in line with analyst estimates of $0.24, its same payout in the previous two quarters.
Shares of Apple dipped 2% to $175 in late trading immediately after the report’s publication, walking back a 2% jump in regular hours.
Big Number
$97 billion. That’s how much profit Apple raked in during its 2023 fiscal year ending in September—a 2.8% decline from last year. Apple was by far the most profitable American company in 2022, with its $99.8 billion in net income, about 38% higher than the next most profitable firm listed on the S&P 500, Microsoft.
What To Watch For
Apple declined to share specific financial guidance for 2023’s final quarter, as is typical, but analysts project $123.1 billion in sales during the period and $32.4 billion of net income, both of which would be the second-highest top and bottom line performances in Apple’s history, trailing only 2021’s last quarter. There are “four key forces working against Apple” for this period, cautions Morgan Stanley analyst Erik Woodring, naming the U.S. dollar’s relative strength, cautious consumer spending, iPhone 15 supply snags and the fiscal quarter’s one-week shorter length compared to 2022.
Key Background
Last year was Apple stock’s worst since 2008, declining 27%, as investors heavily sold off rate-sensitive tech stocks during the Federal Reserve’s shift toward a less growth-friendly monetary policy in its efforts to combat inflation. But Apple shares boomed during 2023’s first half as optimism about big tech’s earnings potential reached arguably its highest level since the dot-com era, and the company’s market capitalization peaked at a world-record $3.1 trillion in July. Though the stock is down about 10% over the last three months, Apple shares remain up more than 40% year-to-date.
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