A customer service representative is working with customers at the Apple Store as shoppers return to indoor shopping after Los Angeles County reduced restrictions on places like the Beverly Center in Beverly Hills on October 8, 2020.
Genaro Molina | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images
Apple is expected to report its first-quarter fiscal gains for 2021 next week, and analysts’ expectations are optimistic.
The company failed to excite investors in the fourth quarter, which ended on September 26, due to poor iPhone sales. But the weakness was probably because people were waiting for the new iPhone 12, which was not on sale until October.
Wednesday’s revenue report will mark the first full season since Apple launched its new range of iPhone devices and subscription services.
The company’s shares traded above $ 136 a share, up more than 3% on Thursday morning, amid higher market gains.
Here’s what analysts say about the tech giant:
Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley analysts said in a statement on Thursday that they expect a record in December.
“Our recent conversations suggest that investors expect Apple to release solid, but not great, results in the December quarter. We disagree and believe that Apple is likely to report record quarterly revenue and revenue of all time,” the analysts wrote. raising its price target to $ 152 from $ 144. “In our opinion, the iPhone 12 has been the most successful launch of the Apple product in the last 5 years.”
The company highlighted the strength in Apple’s portfolio of products and services, determined by the adoption of 5G, the continuation of work and distance learning and the sustained involvement in the App Store. Analysts added that it expects double-digit annual growth for Apple’s five revenue segments in the December quarter.
“Overall, December’s quarterly revenue of $ 108.2 billion is 5% above consensus (we are ahead of consensus in every segment except services), while our $ 1.50 EPS is 7 percent. % over consensus, “they said. “We expect demand strength to continue, and FY21 revenues and EPS estimates are both 5% above consensus.”
DA Davidson
The company said on Thursday that the action “looks delicious” and that it evaluated the price target of 133 USD.
“As stated earlier, we believe that the first line of Apple smartphones on 5G networks is better positioned than fully appreciated by investors for the following reasons: 1) operator support, 2) favorable discretionary revenue and 3) 1B working from distance and 1B distance learning Moreover, we attribute the recent strength of the shares of investors who warm to this notion, “wrote DA Davidson analyst Tom Forte.
The company said it will pay attention to iPhone sales trends, privacy and publicity comments and the potential implications of the new Biden administration.
“We project sales to grow 15.7% to $ 106,236 million, which exceeds the consensus forecast of $ 102,563 million,” the company said. “Remember, Apple did not offer official guidance, but expected a double-digit increase for all product categories, it is expected as iPhone, which is expected a single-digit increase. In terms of profitability, we estimate $ 33,525 million in EBITDA (for a margin of 31.6%), which is above the consensus figure of $ 31,763 million. Finally, we are projecting GAAP EPS of $ 1.52, compared to the consensus estimate of $ 1.40. “
AB amber
The company expects Apple to record strong iPhone sales, but said there are few surprises due to a strong iPhone 12 cycle likely. Analysts, including Toni Sacconaghi, raised their first-quarter EPS estimates to $ 1.53 and FY21 EPS to $ 4.26 due to higher average iPhone sales prices, a weaker US dollar and lower sales. powerful Mac / iPad.
“While our estimates are above consensus, we believe our figures are relatively in line with overall expectations,” analysts said. “We expect Apple to provide ‘guidelines’ rather than ‘guidelines’ for Q2, but they are above consensus, probably because of the currency, and our expectations for a modestly stronger-than-normal seasonality due to the iPhone 12 launch schedule.”
The company said it would pay attention to Apple’s comments about potential smartphone earnings, ongoing regulatory concerns and Apple’s new services and advertising, but said Apple needs something bigger to exceed expectations.
“AAPL has had an extraordinary evolution and trades in line with large technology companies with higher growth rates. At a 33-fold consensus with 21 EPS and higher expectations than the street, we strive to see the case of material performance in AAPL, in the absence of a product surprise announcement, or the migration to a bundled hardware subscription model, “they wrote.
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