Apple smashes expectations in third quarter results | City A.M.

Apple beat Wall Street expectations for its third quarter (Q3) results tonight, delivering revenue of more than $53bn (£40.4bn).

Its revenue for the quarter was $53.3bn and its profit was $2.34 per share, outstripping predictions of $52.3bn and $2.18 per share.

A higher average selling price for its iPhone helped to drive the impressive numbers.

Apple sold 41.3m iPhones in the quarter to 30 June, below expectations of 41.8m, but consumers flocked to its more expensive models.

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The average iPhone selling price hit $724, beating analyst expectations of $694, according to data from FactSet.

Apple’s chief financial officer Luca Maestri said the company’s iPhone X handset, which can sell for more than £1000, was its most popular model in the quarter.

Chief executive Tim Cook said: “We’re thrilled to report Apple’s best June quarter ever, and our fourth consecutive quarter of double-digit revenue growth.

“Our Q3 results were driven by continued strong sales of iPhone, services and wearables, and we are very excited about the products and services in our pipeline.”

Its services revenue, which includes its Apple Music streaming service, was $9.5bn, beating analyst expectations of $9.1bn.

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Nilufar Fowler of WPP’s Mindshare said the strong services growth should put Apple in a good position for the future.

“As people become more aware of what data is collected from them and how it is used, Apple’s approach to shun advertising revenues in search of monetising digital content on its platforms could see it benefit if consumers become more cautious about what and who they share their data with,” she said.

Apple’s shares were up nearly 3.5 per cent in after hours trading.