Apple Inc. gave an upbeat holiday forecast Wednesday even as the company saw iPhone revenue sink for the fourth quarter in a row.
The company handily topped expectations with its fiscal fourth-quarter report, posting revenue of $64 billion, up from $62.9 billion a year earlier, and above the $63 billion that analysts surveyed by FactSet had been forecasting. Net income dropped to $13.7 billion from $14.1 billion, but on a per-share basis, earnings rose to $3.05 from $2.91. Analysts were modeling $2.83 in earnings per share.
The company’s wearables, home and accessories unit saw revenue jump 54% to $6.5 billion, while services revenue climbed 18% to $12.5 billion. Both topped the consensus view… Revenue from iPhones fell to $33.4 billion from $37.2 billion a year before, though the figure came in ahead of the $32.8 billion that analysts were expecting… Management gave a revenue forecast of $85.5 billion to $89.5 billion for the fiscal first quarter, whereas analysts were calling for $86.7 billion.
MacDailyNews Take: Destroying revenue and EPS expectations was nice, but the real key was Apple’s rather healthy guidance for Christmas shopping season!
