Apple reported quarterly revenue of $89.5 billion, down 1 percent YoY, and a cash pile of $162.1 billion down from $166.5 billion at the same time last quarter.
After closing Thursday’s trading session on a bullish outlook, Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) stock dropped approximately 3.39 percent during the after-hours to trade around $171.55. Now, in the pre-market, AAPL is 3.36 percent down, at $171. 61. The sudden Apple stock drop amid a bullish outlook on stock indexes was attributed to Q4 2023 earnings results that were not very impressive to shareholders. Notably, Apple announced a revenue of $89.5 billion during the quarter that ended September 30, whereas Wall Street analysts expected the company to report around $89.3 billion. During the fourth quarter, Apple reported that its diluted earnings per share (EPS) came in at $1.46, up 13 percent from the same time last year.
Nonetheless, Apple remains the leading company with the largest cash pile of about $162.1 billion, although a decline from $166.5 billion during the third quarter of 2023. As the holiday festive season approaches, Apple anticipates making more sales of its recently unveiled products including the iPhone 15.
“Today Apple is pleased to report a September quarter revenue record for iPhone and an all-time revenue record in Services,” Tim Cook, Apple’s Chief Executive Officer, noted. “We now have our strongest lineup of products ever heading into the holiday season, including the iPhone 15 lineup and our first carbon-neutral Apple Watch models, a major milestone in our efforts to make all Apple products carbon neutral by 2030.”
According to the company’s Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri, Apple remains focused on the long-term growth plan despite returning $25 billion to the shareholders during the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, the company’s board of directors declared a cash dividend of $0.24 per share, which is payable on November 16 to shareholders as captured on November 13, 2023.
Apple Accelerates Long-Term Growth with New Products and Stores in Q4 2023
Apple developers have focused on emerging technologies in a bid to ensure sustainable future growth prospects amid heightened competition from other tech companies especially from Asia. Earlier this week, the tech giant company announced that its Apple Pencil, which is USB-C compatible, is now available for order from 33 countries including the United States for $79. The new Apple Pencil enters into sleep mode when magnetically attached to the iPad for storage in a bid to conserve battery.
According to the consolidated statement of operations, the iPhone network sales topped the revenue collection during the fourth quarter at about $$43.8 billion. The services segment was the second largest revenue contributor during the fourth quarter with about $22.31 billion. In a bid to further enhance its net sales in Greater China, Apple announced on Thursday that it had opened its fourth new store in the Zhejiang province at MixC Wenzhou.
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