Apple has reported its second quarter earnings, shattering analysts’ expectations, aided by its services business.
It’s no secret that Apple, like many companies, has had a difficult quarter. Since much of the company’s production is in China, it was hit particularly hard as its supply chain experienced major delays as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, analysts did not expect the company to see any growth this quarter, and actually predicted a 5% year-over-year decline in revenue.
Instead, Apple reported $58.3 billion in revenue, which was a 1% increase year-over-year. Similarly, the company reported earnings per share of $2.55, up 4% year-over-year, as opposed to the 10.8% decrease analysts were expecting.
“Despite COVID-19’s unprecedented global impact, we’re proud to report that Apple grew for the quarter, driven by an all-time record in Services and a quarterly record for Wearables,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “In this difficult environment, our users are depending on Apple products in renewed ways to stay connected, informed, creative, and productive. We feel motivated and inspired to not only keep meeting these needs in innovative ways, but to continue giving back to support the global response, from the tens of millions of face masks and custom-built face shields we’ve sent to medical professionals around the world, to the millions we’ve donated to organizations like Global Citizen and America’s Food Fund.”
Despite the positive results, Apple did not provide guidance on the upcoming quarter, as has been the case with a number of tech companies. It’s likely the full impacts of the pandemic have yet to be fully realized, and Apple seems hesitant to provide any further guidance until the situation is better understood.
Still, this quarter’s results were a big win for the company and will no doubt help assuage analysts’ concerns long-term.
