Apple posts higher Q3 earnings on iPhone surge, misses services forecast
Apple reported fiscal third-quarter revenue of $109.4 billion and earnings per share of $2.02, driven by a 22% rise in iPhone sales, while services revenue fell short of expectations.
Apple announced fiscal third-quarter results on Thursday, posting revenue of $109.42 billion, slightly above the $108.65 billion consensus estimate, and earnings per share of $2.02, surpassing the $1.89 forecast. Net income rose to $29.79 billion from $24.43 billion a year earlier.
iPhone revenue reached $54.25 billion, beating estimates of $53.86 billion, reflecting a 22% year-over-year increase in unit sales. Mac revenue climbed to $10.35 billion, driven by strong demand for the low-cost MacBook Neo and MacBook Pro, while iPad revenue fell to $6.19 billion, below the $6.92 billion estimate. Wearables and home products generated $7.88 billion, marginally above expectations.
The services segment recorded $30.74 billion in revenue, missing the $31.22 billion forecast, partly due to foreign-exchange headwinds. Apple said tariff rebates added 11 cents per share to earnings and lifted the gross margin to a record 50.1%, compared with the 47.9% expected.
Cash holdings stood at $146.52 billion. CEO Tim Cook, in his final earnings briefing before handing the role to chief hardware officer John Ternus, highlighted component shortages and a global memory crunch as ongoing challenges. He noted that Apple has not yet raised iPhone prices in most markets, though price increases have been applied to Macs and iPads.
Revenue in Greater China rose 22% to $18.82 billion, driven by iPhone and Mac sales. Apple said it now has 1.5 billion paid subscriptions across its services portfolio.
Shares fell about 4% in after-hours trading, closing at $333.43. The earnings call is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET.