Apple executives said they expect sales growth of 14 per cent to 17 cent in the current fiscal third quarter, which was above Wall Street estimates of 9.5 per cent growth to $US102.93 billion, according to data from LSEG.
Earlier, Apple reported better-than-expected second-quarter results, with customers showing eagerness to buy a new MacBook model driven by incoming CEO John Ternus, while supply constraints hindered iPhone sales.
Apple said revenue rose about 17 per cent to $US111.18 billion for the fiscal second quarter ended March 28.
Sales of the iPhone, still the company's best-selling product nearly 20 years after its introduction, were $US56.99 billion, slightly less than estimates of $US57.21 billion, according to LSEG data, after the biggest revamp of the lineup since the iPhone X in 2017.
Apple Chief Financial Officer Kevan Parekh also said the company would no longer aim to bring its net cash - its cash minus debt - to a net neutral position. Apple embarked on that goal in 2018 but still had $US54 billion in net cash at the end of the first fiscal quarter in January.
Apple CEO Tim Cook said iPhone sales were held back in the quarter by supply constraints for the advanced processor chips that form the brains of the device. The iPhone 17 family's chips are made on a variant of the same Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co chip manufacturing technology as many leading AI chips.
"The demand was off the charts. And there's just a little less flexibility in the supply chain at the moment for getting more parts," Cook told Reuters.
The iPhone 17 family of devices, plus the iPhone Air, was spearheaded by incoming CEO Ternus, who will take over from Cook in September.
Under Ternus, Pro models gained more features but also a higher price tag, while entry-level models such as the 17e and base model iPhone 17 held prices steady relative to their storage capacity.
That strategy, along with massive buying power, has helped Apple navigate higher memory chip prices so far. But memory costs will catch up to Apple starting in the current quarter ending in June.
"We expect significantly higher memory costs," Cook said during a conference call with analysts. "Where we don't give colour beyond June, I can tell you that beyond the June quarter, we believe memory costs will drive an increasing impact on our business."
Investors are waiting to hear more about Apple's plans for Siri, its voice assistant that it plans to improve with Google technology.
While Apple is not spending tens of billions of dollars per quarter on AI like its rivals, its research and development costs were up 33.5 per cent to $US11.42 billion in the fiscal second quarter.
Apple's services business, which includes revenue from its App Store, which has been under regulatory scrutiny in Europe and elsewhere, generated $US30.98 billion in revenue for the fiscal second quarter, above analyst estimates of $US30.39 billion.
Sales of iPads were $US6.91 billion, compared with estimates of $US6.66 billion, and wearables, which include the Apple Watch, accounted for $US7.9 billion in revenue, compared with expectations of $US7.7 billion, according to LSEG data.
Apple's greater China sales were $US20.5 billion, beating analyst estimates of $US19.45 billion, according to Visible Alpha data.
with AP
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