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Apple
shares recently surged to new all-time highs, amid heightened investor anticipation of June-quarter earnings, due after the closing bell on Tuesday. But it’s the launch of the next generation of iPhones, expected to be unveiled in September, that might be the real difference-maker.
Apple’s recent rally has not erased concerns about the stock. Growing regulatory scrutiny of Big Tech generally and Apple (ticker: AAPL) in particular, with a specific focus on the fees Apple charges developers who distribute applications on the company’s App Store for iPhones, iPads, and Macs, is the obvious one. There are also worries about tough year-over-year comparisons, and some investors fear that the recently robust growth in Mac and iPads sales will slow as the economy returns to more normal conditions. Others are nervous that the next set of iPhones will provide only incremental improvements, and that demand could disappoint.
But no one seems to be too worried about the earning themselves. The Wall Street consensus for the fiscal third quarter is for $72.9 billion in revenue and profits of $1 a share. Even analysts who are cautious about the stock think those numbers are too low. For instance, BofA Global Research analyst Wamsi Mohan is projecting revenue of $77 billion, with profits of $1.05 a share, driven by strength across the company’s hardware portfolio. Mohan still has a Neutral rating and $160 price target on the stock, however, and cautions that the company faces tough comparisons in the quarters ahead given spikes in Mac and iPad sales during the pandemic.
He’s got a point. In the March quarter, Apple’s sales surged 54%, driven by strong growth across the portfolio, with sales increases of 66% for iPhone, 70% for Macs, 79% for iPads, 25% for wearables, and 27% for Services. Street consensus estimates for the June quarter call for $34.2 billion in iPhone sales, $7.2 billion for iPads, $7.9 billion for Macs, $7.8 billion for wearables, home, and accessories, and $16.3 billion for services.
The company did not provide detailed guidance for the quarter, but cautioned that sales could be reduced by as much as $4 billion due to a tight supply of Macs and iPads tied to component shortages.
Still, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives thinks Apple is headed for another across-the-board beat, driven by…
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