Apple tops estimates with $51.5 billion in revenue in Q4

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Apple raked in the cash last quarter.
Apple raked in the cash last quarter.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple’s earnings barely beat Wall Street’s expectations for fourth-quarter revenue thanks to strong sales of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, which helped the company bring in $51.5 billion and quarterly net profit of $11.1 billion

The iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus set a new launch weekend record of 13 million units sold, helping Apple finish the quarter with 48.5 million units sold. 2015 was Apple’s most successful financial year ever, leading Tim Cook to call it a “testament to the tremendous execution by our teams.”

“Fiscal 2015 was Apple’s most successful year ever, with revenue growing 28% to nearly $234 billion. This continued success is the result of our commitment to making the best, most innovative products on earth, and it’s a testament to the tremendous execution by our teams,” said Tim Cook in a statement released on Apple’s website.

“We are heading into the holidays with our strongest product lineup yet, including iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, Apple Watch with an expanded lineup of cases and bands, the new iPad Pro and the all-new Apple TV which begins shipping this week.”

Wall Street expected Apple to report $51.04 billion in revenue for the quarter. EPS was projected at $1.88, but Apple topped it with $1.96. Apple managed to sell 48.5 million iPhones. iPad sales were still low with 9.88 million sold, while the Mac continues to defy expectations with 5.7 million units sold in Q4.

CFO Luca Maestri noted that Apple returned $17 billion to investors during the quarter through repurchases and dividends. The company has now completed over $143 billion of its $200 billion capital return program.

The following guidance is being provided by Apple for Q1 2016:

• revenue between $75.5 billion and $77.5 billion
• gross margin between 39 percent and 40 percent
• operating expenses between $6.3 billion and $6.4 billion
• other income/(expense) of $400 million
• tax rate of 26.2 percent

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