Apple Surpasses Wall Street Expectations with iPhone 16 Boost

Apple reported stronger-than-expected financial results for its fiscal fourth quarter, driven by robust early sales of the iPhone 16. The company's revenue stood at $94.93 billion, exceeding Wall Street's projections. Tim Cook expressed optimism about the iPhone 16's AI features, despite slower sales in China and missed targets in other product lines.

Apple has reported financial results that exceeded Wall Street expectations for its fiscal fourth quarter, largely due to impressive early sales of the iPhone 16. The company's revenue reached $94.93 billion, surpassing Wall Street targets of $94.58 billion. Earnings, excluding a one-time tax charge in the EU, stood at $1.64 per share, beating analyst expectations of $1.60 per share.

CEO Tim Cook highlighted the strong early performance of the iPhone 16, which contributed significantly to the overall increase in iPhone sales by 5.5% to $46.22 billion. The uptake of Apple Intelligence features has also doubled compared to the previous year's figures. Despite this, shares slid slightly due to underwhelming sales in China and other product lines.

Looking forward, analysts such as Tom Forte suggest the potential for prolonged weakness in China's market, with expectations for forthcoming details on sales strategies and Apple Intelligence deployment in the region. Yet, the general trajectory indicates that the iPhone 16 may sustain Apple's growth amidst increasing AI investment from rivals.

(With inputs from agencies.)