Roundup of Analyst Expectations Ahead of Q3 2012 Earnings Call

Philip Elmer-Dewitt has put together his list of analyst expectations ahead of Apple's quarterly earnings report this afternoon. The list includes estimates from 68 analysts: 34 "independent" and 34 "institutional" who work for large investment houses or research organizations.

NewImage
As usual, the independents are much more bullish than the institutional analysts. The independent consensus expects earnings per share (EPS) of $12.31 on revenue of $41.49 billion. The institutional consensus is EPS of $10.33 on $37.21 billion in revenue. This is a 12% difference on revenue and a 19% difference on EPS.

Apple will announce its earnings for the third fiscal quarter of 2012 (second calendar quarter of 2012) and host a conference call regarding the release this afternoon at 5:00 PM Eastern / 2:00 PM Pacific. The earnings release itself typically comes in around 4:30 PM Eastern. MacRumors will have live coverage of the proceedings.

Last quarter the company earned $11.6 billion in profit on revenue of $39.2 billion. For the second fiscal quarter, Apple has issued guidance of $34 billion in revenue with profits of $8.68 per share. The company typically exceeds its guidance by a significant margin.

Popular Stories

streaming black friday 2025

Black Friday Streaming Deals Include Big Savings on Disney+, Hulu, Apple TV, and More

Monday November 24, 2025 8:03 am PST by
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Adds These New Features to Your iPhone

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:50 am PST by
iOS 26.2 is currently in beta testing. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics for Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date. Keep reading...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

iOS 27 Will Reportedly Have Two Key Upgrades

Sunday November 23, 2025 8:48 am PST by
iOS 27 will reportedly have two major elements: quality improvements and new AI features. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that iOS 27 will be similar to Mac OS X Snow Leopard, in the sense that Apple is focused on improving "quality and underlying performance" over adding new features. Gurman said there is one exception to this rule, though, as he expects...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: iPhone 18 Pro Looks Like a Huge Upgrade

Friday November 21, 2025 9:10 am PST by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through all of the new features and improvements expected to come to next year's iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Apple's next-generation iPhones are less than ten months away and we already have a good idea about what to expect based on corroborated leaks, rumors,...
General Black Friday Deals 25 Red

Apple Black Friday Deals Available Now on AirPods, iPads, Accessories, and More

Friday November 21, 2025 8:48 am PST by
We're only a few days away from Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When...
Apple Shopping Event 2025

Apple Announces 2025 Black Friday Event, Here's What You Can Get

Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others. During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...
hikawa phone grip stand apple%402x

Apple Launches Second Limited-Edition iPhone Accessory in a Month

Friday November 21, 2025 3:53 am PST by
Apple has begun selling the Hikawa Phone Grip and Stand, a new limited-edition iPhone accessory designed with accessibility in mind. Designed by LA-based Bailey Hikawa to celebrate the 40th anniversary of accessibility at Apple, the grip uses magnets to securely snap onto any iPhone with MagSafe. Apple says it can be removed with ease, and doubles as a stand with two different viewing...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone to Debut These Two Breakthrough Features

Wednesday November 19, 2025 7:26 am PST by
Apple's first foldable iPhone is expected to launch alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models in fall 2026, and it's shaping up to include two standout features that could set it apart from the competition. The book-style foldable will reportedly feature an industry-first 24-megapixel under-display camera built into the inner display, according to a recent JP Morgan equity research report. That...
amazon black friday

Amazon Kicks Off Black Friday Sale With Major Discounts on Apple Accessories, TVs, and More

Sunday November 23, 2025 7:12 am PST by
Black Friday deals have begun, and Amazon is one of the best places you can find steep discounts on numerous products this week. We've already collected all of the best Apple-related deals you'll find at Amazon (and other retailers) in our Apple Black Friday Deals post, so below you'll find other discounts on devices like Anker accessories, Beats headphones, video games, TVs, and more. Note:...

Top Rated Comments

hobo.hopkins Avatar
174 months ago
I find it pretty hard to believe that the 13" MBP is the top volume model. You almost never see them, where as a lot of people have the 15". The 13" Air, on the other hand, is extremely popular.
My experience has been the exact opposite. I see almost exclusively 13" MacBook Pros at University settings.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cvaldes Avatar
174 months ago
LOL, ace (*cough cough*) ANAL-yst Huberty is lowballing this one, coming in at the bottom.
How does she still have a job?
Because technology media sites (MacRumors, AppleInsider, etc.) will post her lunatic babblings to generate pageviews.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cvaldes Avatar
174 months ago
I'm sticking to my guns (https://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=14770679&posted=1#post14770679).

$12.35 EPS on $40.1B revenue

LOL, ace (*cough cough*) ANAL-yst Huberty is lowballing this one, coming in at the bottom.

:p
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BrownManUPS Avatar
174 months ago
Hope to hear about the ML release tomorrow.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Reason077 Avatar
174 months ago
Looks likely to be another blowout quarter from Apple.

The Mac numbers will be interesting, however. Will the Retina MacBook be enough to reverse the poor sales growth seen recently?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cvaldes Avatar
174 months ago
But her company loses credibility. I'd never invest with Morgan Stanley or even recommend them because they refuse to fire someone like her. Oh well.
Morgan Stanley probably has hundreds of analysts covering all sorts of industries. The track record of one specific individual is irrelevant (except to anyone listening to that person).

Huberty is very consistent in her ineptitude, so one can use her predictions, not as what Apple will do, but as what Apple will not do.

She definitely is not a star-rated analyst, although that never stops MacRumors/AppleInsider/other sites from quoting her. Like I said, her nonsensical reports generate pageviews.

----------


Roundup of Customer Expectations After Q3 2012 Earnings Call
New Mini
New iMac
New TB Display
Apple generally announces new hardware products on Tuesdays, so it is unlikely that Apple will release these the day after an analyst conference call.

More likely would be the availability of OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion. Apple has already covered the features several times, including WWDC, so the arrival is a foregone conclusion. Apple released 10.7 Lion the day after their Q2FY2011 call, so it's a far more likely scenario.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)