posted strong results for its quarterly earnings on Thursday, but investors鈥� attention is also focused on the upcoming CEO change and the tech firm’s artificial intelligence strategy.
Apple CEO Tim Cook announced earlier this month he will be with Apple鈥檚 head of hardware engineering, John Ternus, assuming the role later this year.
The January-March results announced Thursday reflect the continued momentum of iPhone sales. Cook said in a statement that it was the company’s best March quarter ever, with “double-digit growth across every geographic segment.”
The company earned $29.58 billion, or $2.01 per share, in the January-March period, up about 22% from the same period a year earlier.
Revenue rose about 17% to $111.18 billion from $95.36 billion a year earlier. iPhone sales made up the bulk of revenue, bringing in $56.99 billion.
The Cupertino, California company beat analyst expectations this quarter. Analysts surveyed by FactSet Research forecast earnings of $1.95 per share on revenue of $109.46 billion.
In the previous quarter that ended in December, the company said it reached record-high iPhone sales, even though it still hasn鈥檛 delivered on its of Siri assistance with AI. iPhone achieved a March quarter revenue record, fueled by strong demand for the iPhone 17 lineup.
This March, Apple introduced the new , an entry-level laptop, the company鈥檚 most aggressive attempts at moving into the affordable market.
High demand has caused supply constraints, Cook said on a conference call with analysts Thursday. Those constraints have been driven by the availability of the advanced technology used to form what is essentially a device’s brain. In the current quarter that runs through June, supply constraints will affect several Mac models, in part because the 鈥渃ustomer response to Mac Neo has just been off the charts鈥� with higher-than-expected demand, Cook added.
The company also saw higher memory costs in the recent quarter and expects 鈥渟ignificantly higher鈥� memory costs moving forward, Cook said, telling analysts that beyond the current quarter, 鈥渨e believe memory costs will drive an increasing impact on our business, and we鈥檒l continue to evaluate this.鈥�
鈥淎pple showed that even the best operators can鈥檛 fully escape the memory squeeze,鈥� said Jake Behan, Direxion鈥檚 head of capital markets, in a statement. 鈥淭im Cook鈥檚 warning of 鈥榮ignificantly higher鈥� costs in the coming quarters tells you how real the AI-driven supply crunch has become for the entire industry.鈥�
Cook did follow up on the Siri promise, saying that Apple will bring 鈥渁 more personalized Siri鈥� to users this year, but did not elaborate on timing. He also teased new software and developer tools and AI advancements. Apple’s systems deliver 鈥渋ntelligence that is fast, personal and private,鈥� Cook said. 鈥淭his is not AI as a standalone feature, but AI is an essential, intuitive part of the experience across our devices.鈥�
Cook has helmed Apple for 15 years, inheriting the CEO role from the late Steve Jobs. During his tenure at the head of the company, the company鈥檚 market value soared by more than $3.6 trillion during an iPhone-fueled era of prosperity.
Ternus will start as CEO on Sept. 1, and Cook will remain involved with the Cupertino, California company as executive chairman.
Ternus briefly joined a call with analysts after the results were posted Thursday, with Cook introducing him and emphasizing the confidence he has in his successor. Cook said he and Ternus will be working together closely over the next few months to make the transition as smooth as possible.
鈥淭his is the most exciting time in my 25 year career at Apple to be building products and services,鈥� Ternus said. 鈥淭here are so many opportunities before us, and I couldn鈥檛 be more optimistic about what鈥檚 to come.鈥�
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