Tech giant Apple, Inc. AAPL reported late-Thursday better-than-expected fiscal year 2023 fourth-quarter results but investor sentiment soured as the company’s year-over-year revenue declining streak extended to a fourth straight quarter.
More negative tidings followed as CFO Luca Maestri commented on the earnings call that the December quarter revenue will likely be flat with the September quarter. The consensus is modeling a 5% revenue growth for the quarter. Maestri reasoned that their fiscal-year 2024 first-quarter will likely be stymied by one less week compared to the year-ago quarter.
The company expects year-over-year growth for iPhones and a strong acceleration in Mac revenue following the fourth-quarter underperformance. The iPad and wearables, home and accessories segments will likely see decelerating growth due to different timing of product launches, Maestri said on the call.
Commenting on the results, Wedbush’s Daniel Ives said the stock could be weak at Friday’s open on the headline noice and December quarter guidance. “But we would be strong buyers as growth is back to the iPhone franchise, Cupertino margin story goes higher, and Services is now firmly back to double-digit growth,” he added.
The analyst reiterated an Outperform rating and the $240 price target on the stock.
In premarket, Apple stock fell 2.24% to $173.59, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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