Strong demand for the iPhone 17 lineup pushed Apple to $111.2 billion in revenue for the March quarter, up 17% from a year earlier and ahead of Wall Street estimates. IPhone revenue rose 22% to about $57 billion, which the company says was fuelled by strong demand for the iPhone 17 family. Services, Mac and iPad revenue also climbed, and Apple raised its June-quarter revenue guidance to growth of 14% to 17%. The results came as Apple flagged supply constraints and authorised a further $100 billion in share buybacks.

Apple delivered a better-than-expected March quarter and its results leaned heavily on handset sales. Revenue for the quarter came in at about $111.18 billion, beating Street forecasts. Earnings per share were $2.01, above analyst estimates.

One line stood out. IPhone revenue climbed roughly 22% from a year earlier. The figure was about $56.99 billion, according to the company. Apple said demand for the iPhone 17 lineup was unusually strong.

Which products moved the needle

Apple pointed to several recent launches as drivers of demand. The company named the iPhone 17 family its most popular lineup ever, and added a lower-cost iPhone 17e to broaden the range. Apple also refreshed the iPad Air with an M4 chip and introduced the MacBook Neo, a $599 notebook aimed at students and budget buyers.

Services revenue continued to grow. The services business, which includes the App Store and iCloud, produced about $31 billion in the quarter. That was another record quarter for that segment and helped support margins.

Supply limits and costs

Apple said it faced supply constraints on iPhones and Macs. The company tied some of that to a global memory shortage driven by rising demand for AI workloads. Higher memory prices have cropped up across the tech industry and have pushed up costs for device makers and cloud players.

On the earnings call, CFO Kevan Parekh said Apple had experienced constraints on iPhone and Mac shipments during the period. He didn't give precise shipment shortfalls. Still, Cook said the company beat guidance despite those supply limits.

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How markets and shareholders fared

Investors reacted positively. Apple stock rose in after-hours trading following the results. The company also moved on capital return. The board authorised an additional $100 billion in stock repurchases and declared a 27-cent quarterly dividend, up 4% from the prior payout.

Apple gave revenue guidance that was well above analyst expectations for the June quarter. Management told investors to expect revenue growth of 14% to 17% from a year earlier. Analysts had modelled roughly 9.5% growth for that period.

Where this sits in recent history

The March quarter numbers followed strong results earlier in the fiscal year. Apple recorded record iPhone revenue in the December quarter, when the company said iPhones generated a near-$85.3 billion haul. That stronger holiday performance and the March-quarter momentum left Apple with double-digit growth across geographic regions.

Tim Cook framed the run of results as proof of demand for the current product mix. "This is the strongest iPhone lineup we've ever had and by far the most popular," he said on the earnings call. He added that the company was excited by recent product introductions.

Investors will be watching supply rather than demand. Apple raised guidance for the coming quarter. That guidance assumes the company can meet enough of the demand despite component constraints. If memory prices stay elevated, that could influence both Apple's margins and production plans.

Rivals and suppliers will also be tracking the iPhone 17 cycle. Higher device revenue lifts component orders across the supply chain. It also shapes competitors' product and pricing moves in coming quarters.

The quarter came days after Apple announced a leadership transition. Tim Cook said he will step down as CEO after 15 years, and John Ternus was named as his successor. The company confirmed the change on April 20, and the earnings call was the first full set of results investors heard since that announcement.

That shift adds another lens for investors as they judge the June-quarter guidance and product road map. For now, Apple is keeping capital returns high and expanding the product line that helped produce the current quarter's gains.

Device sales drove top-line growth, but services helped protect margins. Apple reported a gross margin above expectations. Services revenue tends to be less cyclical than hardware. It gives Apple recurring income from subscriptions and digital sales.

Mac and iPad sales also rose. Mac revenue climbed to about $8.4 billion, while iPad revenue reached roughly $6.9 billion. Wearables, Home and Accessories brought in near $7.9 billion. Those gains were smaller than the iPhone surge but still contributed to the overall 17% revenue rise.

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Apple raised its June-quarter revenue guidance to growth of 14% to 17% and authorised a further $100 billion in share buybacks.

This article was created with AI assistance.