Apple Q2 Earnings Beat Estimates, Services Drive Top-Line Growth

Core Insights - Apple reported second-quarter fiscal 2025 adjusted earnings of $1.65 per share, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.48% and reflecting a year-over-year increase of 7.8% [1] - Net sales rose 5.1% year over year to $95.36 billion, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.16% [1] Sales Performance - Product sales, which constitute 72.1% of total sales, increased by 2.7% year over year to $68.71 billion [1] - Services revenues grew 11.6% year over year to $26.65 billion, accounting for 27.9% of total sales, although it fell short of the consensus mark by 0.43% [2] - iPhone sales rose 1.9% year over year to $46.84 billion, making up 49.1% of total sales and beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.84% [3] - Greater China sales decreased by 2.3% year over year, while revenues from Japan and the Americas increased by 16.5% and 8.2%, respectively [4] - Non-iPhone revenues (iPad, Mac, and Wearables) collectively increased by 4.5% year over year, with Mac sales at $7.95 billion (up 6.7%) and iPad sales at $6.4 billion (up 15.2%) [5] - Wearables, Home, and Accessories sales declined by 4.9% year over year to $7.52 billion [6] Margin Analysis - Gross margin expanded by 50 basis points year over year to 47.1%, with a sequential increase of 20 basis points due to a favorable product mix [7] - Products' gross margin contracted by 340 basis points sequentially to 35.9% due to unfavorable foreign exchange impacts, while Services' gross margin improved by 70 basis points sequentially to 75.7% [7] - Operating margin increased by 30 basis points year over year to 31% [8] Financial Position - As of March 29, 2025, Apple had cash and marketable securities of $132.92 billion against term debt of $92.2 billion [9] - The company returned nearly $29 billion in the reported quarter through dividend payouts and share repurchases [9] - The board authorized an additional $100 billion for share repurchases and raised dividends by 4% to 26 cents per share [10] Future Outlook - For the third quarter of fiscal 2025, Apple expects net sales to grow low to mid-single digits year over year, with a gross margin forecast of 45.5-46.5% [11] - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter fiscal 2025 revenues is $89.22 billion, indicating a 4.02% growth year over year [13]