What to Expect When Apple Reports

By Chris Lange Updated Jan 11, 3:31PM EST · Published Nov 1, 10:25AM EDT

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What to Expect When Apple Reports — © Nikada / Getty Images

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is set to report its fiscal fourth-quarter financial results after the markets close on Thursday. Out of all the FAANG stocks, Apple has actually performed the best despite a horrific October. While the S&P 500 dipped over 7% in October, Apple is down less than 5%, which is saying something considering the tech sector was down about 8.5%.

As per its guidance, Apple expects to see revenues in the range of $60 billion to $62 billion and gross margin of 38.0% to 38.5%. Consensus analyst estimates for the iPhone giant call for $61.57 billion in revenue and $2.78 in earnings per share (EPS). The same period for last year had $2.07 in EPS and $52.58 billion in revenue.

Given the recent collapse in the tech sector (think Facebook, Intel and Twitter), a miss by Apple could increase the carnage. Even a narrow beat might not be enough to lift investors’ outlook for the sector.

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In Apple’s most recent quarter, the firm reported its product sales as follows:

iPhone moved 41.3 million units, up 1% year over year. The segment pulled in revenues of $29.91 billion, an increase of 20%.
iPad reported 11.6 million units sold, an increase of 1%. Revenues decreased 5% to $4.74 billion.
Mac sold 3.72 million units, a decrease of 13% from last year. Revenues decreased 4% to $5.33 billion.
Services revenues increased 31% to $9.55 billion.
Other Products revenues increased 37% to $3.74 billion.

Excluding Thursday’s move, Apple has outperformed the broad markets, with its stock up about 29% in the past 52-weeks. In just 2018 alone, the stock was up roughly the same amount.

A few analysts weighed in on Apple ahead of the report:

UBS has a Buy rating with a $250 price target.
Rosenblatt has a Buy rating and a $200 price target.
Nomura has a Neutral rating with a $215 price target.
Macquarie has a Buy rating with a $235 target price.
Wells Fargo has a Neutral rating with a $210 target.
Merrill Lynch has a Buy rating and a $235 price target.

Shares of Apple were last seen trading at $219.20, in a 52-week range of $150.24 to $233.47. The consensus analyst price target is $239.75.

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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.