Apple updated its investor relations page today to note that it will announce its earnings for the first fiscal quarter (fourth calendar quarter) of 2014 on Monday, January 27. The earnings release typically occurs just after 4:30 PM Eastern Time following the close of regular stock trading, and the conference call is scheduled to follow at 5:00 PM Eastern / 2:00 PM Pacific.
MacRumors will provide running coverage of the earnings release and conference call.
The release will provide a look into initial iPad Air and Retina iPad mini sales during their first quarter of availability as well as iPhone 5s and 5c sales throughout the holiday. Apple reported a record number of iPhone/iPad sales during fiscal 2013, at 150 million iPhones and 71 million iPads.
In its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings call, Apple guided expected revenue of $55–58 billion and gross margin between 36.5 and 37.5 percent. If the company meets even the low end of that guidance, it will count as the strongest quarter for Apple in history.
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Investors will consider guidance, but flat earnings will likely fail to impress. The point being, calling every quarter a "record" is misleading, especially if only revenues are being considered and earnings are in fact flat.
One time expenses can be broken out in financial reports, but I haven't seen in the past where this has made a huge difference in Apple's financials.
Well, it certainly appears to be true that the article is taking only revenues into account, since it quotes only those estimates along with gross margins. I also don't see investors being too impressed with differed revenues. I don't know how they book revenue from giving away software at any point in the future.
In any case, I think we all know why AAPL is stuck in low gear. It's because they are no longer posting 20-30% YoY earnings growth. In reality they are posting little to none. Kind of puts the concept of a "record quarter" into proper perspective.
55m iphones
24m ipads
5,5m macs
eps 14,74
rev 59b
If this post shows before January 27, my time machine is a GOGO.
Exactly, because of a lack of care about definitions of financial terms. They seem to be referring to revenues, but revenues matter far less than earnings. The forecast of about $13.80 EPS is about the same as last year, so if this proves to be the case, then it's a no-growth year for Apple.
You can talk about other product intervals, but these are essentially meaningless comparisons. When facing competition of the kind they are now in their key markets they simply have to move faster, or they will not only find that their earnings are not growing, but that consumers will look elsewhere for visionary products.
What happened at Apple between 1997 and 2001 is, as we know now, they became committed to making the next big thing, and the next big thing after that, and the next big thing after that. I don't believe that these big things are at an end, or should even be at a pause, and despite keeping up with the rumors as a matter of sport, I know that most of them miss the real events by a mile. At the same time, I am not an apologist for Apple. If it looks like their feet are dragging, I will say so -- as both fan of the company for 30+ years, and an investor for more than half that time. I am neither because I think they make nice, evolutionary products. I expect them to continue to make the totally unexpected, completely real. This is the company and culture that Steve Jobs built, and I expect Apple to be that company for years to come.
Others are entitled to lower expectations. I just don't understand them.
Apple is killing right now. Increasing sales. Share. And margins.