AAPL Stock Ekes Out Minor Gains After-Hours After Tapering Q4 China Sales Growth Offsets Earnings Beat

• Fourth-quarter revenue reached $114.5 billion, surpassing the Wall Street consensus estimate of $113.5 billion. 
• iPhone sales grew 17% to $57.6 billion, and earnings hit $2.10 per share, whereas iPad, wearables, and China revenue figures fell short of projections. 
• The financial results mark the initial quarterly report under newly appointed Chief Executive Officer John Ternus, who took the helm on Sept. 1. 

Apple Inc. (AAPL) share price inched about 0.2% higher after-hours after the iPhone maker reported fourth-quarter revenue that outpaced average analyst forecasts; however, slowing growth in China revenue dampened sentiment. 

Net earnings came in at $2.10 per share, exceeding the anticipated $2 target. Despite beating top-line expectations, the figures signal a deceleration from the 16% growth rate recorded in the preceding June quarter. 

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Apple reported a 12% rise in total revenue to $114.5 billion, outpacing average analyst forecasts of $113.5 billion. “We’re closing the year with our most ambitious lineup yet. That includes the iPhone Duo, the most transformational iPhone since the original, alongside iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, our most powerful iPhones yet,” CEO John Ternus said. 

“We also just introduced a whole new generation of hardware for the home and brought Touch to Mac for the first time. Together with the all-new Siri AI, it’s an incredible lineup to carry us into the holiday season.” 

Apple’s China Challenges

The latest quarterly figures introduced a mixed landscape across Apple’s major product lines and geographical markets.

Revenue generated by the iPhone climbed 17% to reach $57.6 billion, outperforming the predicted $56.5 billion, as per projections from Bloomberg. The services division, which includes iCloud subscriptions, the App Store, Apple TV, and music streaming, advanced 9.8% to hit $31.6 billion, aligning closely with market forecasts. Conversely, results from the iPad and wearables portfolios, which include AirPods, faced weakness.

Although sales in Greater China climbed 21% year-over-year to $17.5 billion, the total was more than $1 billion shy of external Wall Street projections, as seen on Bloomberg. 

This earnings cycle represents the first report overseen by John Ternus since stepping into the role of chief executive officer on September 1. 

AAPL Stock: Retail View 

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits was ‘bearish’ with ‘high’ message volumes. 

AAPL stock has gained about 24% year-to-date.

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