Earnings Preview: What To Expect From Apple On Thursday

NEW YORK, NY – JANUARY 29: A man checks his phone in an Apple retail store in Grand Central … [+] Terminal, January 29, 2019 in New York City. Apple is set to report first-quarter earnings results after U.S. markets close on Tuesday. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

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Apple AAPL Inc. is scheduled to report earnings after Thursday’s close. The stock hit a record high of $182.94/share in early 2022 and is currently trading near $148/share. The stock is prone to big moves after reporting earnings and can easily gap up if the numbers are strong. Conversely, if the numbers disappoint, the stock can easily gap down. To help you prepare, here is what the Street is expecting:

Earnings Preview:

The company is expected to report a gain of $1.26/share on $90.00 billion in revenue. Meanwhile, the so-called Whisper number is a gain of $1.31/share. The Whisper number is the Street’s unofficial view on earnings.

Charts & Data Courtesy MarketSmith Inc.

Charts & Data Courtesy MarketSmith Inc.

A Closer Look At The Fundamentals:

Apple just launched its latest iPhone but many people are concerned that it is not selling as well as initially expected. iPhone sales contribute significantly to earnings and if sales disappoint that can easily hurt earnings. Earnings have slowed considerably over the past four quarters which suggests this quarter may disappoint. The good news for the bulls is that expectations are so low (due to the broader economy) that the company can easily beat the low expectations.

A Closer Look At The Technicals:

Technically, the stock is outperforming the major indices and many other tech stocks because it is “only” 18% below its 52-week high. Meanwhile, the major indices and many other tech stocks are down much more than that. The bulls want to see the stock get – and stay – above its declining 50 and 200 day moving average lines while the bears want to see it gap down and break below June’s low.

Pay Attention To How The Stock Reacts To The News:

From where I sit, the most important trait I look for during earnings season is how the market and a specific company reacts to the news. Remember, always keep your losses small and never argue with the tape.

Disclosure: The stock has been previously featured in the FindLeadingStocks.com report.