All Eyes on Apple (AAPL) Into Q3 Earnings Report; iPhone, China, Apple Watch in Focus
All eyes will be on Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) tonight as the company reports its third quarter earnings. Analysts on average are looking for EPS of $1.81 on revenues of $49.31 billion, representing growth of 41% and 32% from the same quarter last year, respectively.
Based on data at EPS Insider, Apple beats the EPS consensus by 9.5% (suggesting EPS of $1.98) and normally sees a 4% move up in the week immediately following earnings. Last quarter, the stock traded down 1.6% in the trading session immediately following earnings. However, over the past four quarter the stock has been up 3 out of 4 times in the session immediate following earnings, with an average upside move of 3.7%.
Cowen analyst Timothy Arcuri is looking for EPS and revenue upside for the quarter. The firm models EPS of $1.88 on revenues of $51 billion.
In addition to the top and bottom-line numbers, iPhone unit numbers will be crucial. Stifel analyst Aaron Rakers recently raised his Q3 iPhone estimates from 43.5M to 50.2M as they expect China-driven iPhone upside potential. The consensus is between 48-49 million iPhone units.
Apple Watch numbers will also be of interest to shareholders as solid numbers become available for the first time. The new device has been getting some bad press of late so it is of some concern. Analysts expect initial Apple Watch sales of 3M or so for the quarter.
Maybe the most important topic from the announcement and conference call will be related to China demand given the recent stock market crash. FX and Apple Pay stats will also be topics to focus on.
