Apple: all eyes are on its quarterly results, which hinge on the iPhone

Apart from Nvidia, whose results are due later, all eyes are on the latest quarterly results from the big tech firms. That is: Apple. These are the results for the fourth quarter of the 2025–2026 financial year, the first under the leadership of the new chief executive, John Ternus, who took over from Tim Cook in September. This announcement comes as Wall Street is questioning the group’s strategy on artificial intelligence, which differs significantly from that of the hyperscalers, who are making billion-dollar investments in data centres.

According to the LSEG consensus, Cupertino is expected to post revenue of $113.39 billion, up by almost 11 per cent, and a net profit of $29.04 billion, up by 6 per cent. iPhone sales are expected to reach $56.54 billion, up 15 per cent, whilst services revenue is forecast to reach $31.56 billion, marking an increase of close to 10 per cent – the lowest growth rate in over three years.

Investors will be looking in particular at guidance for the Christmas quarter, demand for the new Duo foldable iPhone, and the pressure on margins caused by rising memory prices – a trend also fuelled by the global rush towards AI. But Ternus’s first meeting with analysts will also be crucial in clarifying the future of Siri and Apple’s ability to turn new smart features into commercial opportunities, without incurring the huge infrastructure costs faced by its main tech competitors.

The Californian group, as is well known, is taking a different approach to Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Meta and Oracle. These companies are allocating increasing resources to building computing power, servers and infrastructure for training and running advanced models. Apple, on the other hand, prioritises the integration of artificial intelligence into devices and operating systems, focusing on on-device processing, the protection of personal data and partnerships with external suppliers for more complex technologies. This approach limits the company’s direct exposure to the investment race, whilst still leaving it dependent on partners for certain strategic capabilities. Its competitive advantage lies primarily in its installed base of iPhones, Macs and other products, through which it can distribute digital tools to an already loyal customer base.

The aim is not necessarily to sell computing power, as cloud providers do, but to use AI to make hardware more attractive, encourage device upgrades and expand opportunities for monetising services. Subscriptions, app commissions and payments already form an essential part of an ecosystem characterised by higher margins than those of physical products. It remains to be seen how well this architecture will be able to withstand the advance of autonomous assistants, which are capable of altering the relationship between users, apps and platforms. For Cupertino, the challenge therefore centres on controlling the digital experience and retaining its role as the preferred intermediary for access to new technologies.