Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.17 EPS

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The iPhone maker reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.17, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $143.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $138.25 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 171.22% and a net margin of 27.04%.Apple’s quarterly revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.40 earnings per share.

Here are the key takeaways from Apple’s conference call:

• Apple delivered a record quarter with $143.8 billion in revenue (+16% YoY), all-time EPS of $2.84, and an iPhone revenue record of $85.3 billion driven by strong global demand.
• Management warned of supply constraints into the March quarter driven by limited advanced-node SoC capacity and said rising memory prices will likely pressure margins in Q2 despite minimal impact in the December quarter.
• Services hit an all-time revenue record of $30 billion (+14% YoY), with broad-based strength across advertising, cloud, music, payments and growing Apple TV viewership, supported by a 2.5 billion active device install base.
• Apple announced a collaboration with Google to develop next‑generation Apple Foundation Models to power personalized Siri and expanded Apple Intelligence, combining on‑device and Private Cloud Compute approaches.
• Strong capital returns and liquidity — nearly $32 billion returned to shareholders in the quarter, a declared dividend of $0.26 per share, and net cash of about $54 billion — alongside continued investment in U.S. manufacturing and R&D.

Apple Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of AAPL opened at $259.48 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Apple has a 12 month low of $169.21 and a 12 month high of $288.62. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $268.38 and its 200-day moving average is $251.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.81 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.09.

Apple Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 9th. Apple’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group set a $276.47 target price on Apple and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Apple and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Loop Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $325.00 price objective (up from $315.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Apple from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $315.00 price target (down from $330.00) on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $289.23.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record quarter driven by iPhone 17 and China — Apple beat revenue and EPS expectations, reported record iPhone sales and gave strong March-quarter revenue/margin guidance, supporting bullish near-term fundamentals. Apple sales, profit beat
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades/price-target increases — Several firms raised targets and reiterated buy ratings after the beat (including TD Cowen, JPMorgan, Monness Crespi & Hardt), which supports upside sentiment among institutional investors. Analyst notes
• Neutral Sentiment: AI strategy remains ambiguous — Apple announced partnerships (e.g., Google Gemini) and made AI-related M&A (Q.ai), but offered limited execution details; these moves signal intent but leave monetization and competitive positioning unclear. AI details unclear
• Neutral Sentiment: Potential supply-chain diversification — Reports that Apple is exploring U.S. foundry partners (e.g., Intel) could ease long-term sourcing risk but are early-stage and not an immediate fix for 2026 capacity issues. Intel foundry reports
• Negative Sentiment: Rising memory-chip costs and shortages — Apple warned memory prices are beginning to bite; suppliers like Samsung and SK Hynix are prioritizing AI chips, tightening supply and pressuring gross margins if costs stay elevated. Memory cost warning
• Negative Sentiment: iPhone production constraints — Multiple reports say TSMC/other chip shortages are limiting Apple’s ability to meet iPhone demand, forcing Apple to prioritize premium models and potentially capping unit growth despite strong demand. TSMC supply short
• Negative Sentiment: Talent and execution questions in AI — Reports of AI researcher departures and commentary that the Google partnership could limit Apple’s AI upside have soured investor enthusiasm for Apple’s AI prospects. AI researcher departures

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, insider Chris Kondo sold 3,752 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.23, for a total transaction of $1,017,654.96. Following the transaction, the insider owned 15,098 shares in the company, valued at $4,095,030.54. This trade represents a 19.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Apple

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC grew its stake in Apple by 1,800.0% during the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Apple during the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. 49 Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Apple by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. 49 Wealth Management LLC now owns 298,920 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 40,543 shares in the last quarter. HFM Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Apple in the first quarter valued at approximately $99,000. Finally, Sagard Holdings Management Inc. acquired a new position in Apple during the second quarter valued at approximately $121,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Apple

Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) is a multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. The company designs, develops and sells consumer electronics, software and services. Over its history Apple has evolved from personal computers to a broad portfolio that spans mobile devices, wearables, home entertainment and digital services.

Apple’s principal hardware products include the iPhone smartphone, iPad tablet, Mac personal computers, Apple Watch wearable devices and a range of accessories such as AirPods and HomePod.