From a look at Apple Inc.’s stock, you might think that Wall Street was expecting something big from the company’s coming earnings report.
Consensus estimates, however, don’t back up all the supposed enthusiasm about Apple’s fiscal fourth-quarter report, scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. Analysts surveyed by FactSet see the company posting revenue of $63 billion, nearly flat from $62.9 billion a year ago. The report will cap off a fiscal year in which Apple’s earnings and revenue are both expected to decline from a year earlier, which has happened at Apple only once since 2001.
Still, Morgan Stanley’s Katy Huberty, the most bullish analyst on the stock, says Apple doesn’t even have to do much with its earnings report to sustain its share-price trajectory.“We believe Apple remains under-owned by investors despite the 15% gain since last reporting earnings and therefore if Apple is able to post in-line September-quarter results and December-quarter guidance then the stock can sustain momentum into year-end, barring any major shocks to global markets,” she wrote.
Revenue: The FactSet consensus models $62.98 billion in September-quarter revenue, while the Estimize consensus is for $63.06 billion. A year earlier, Apple posted revenue of $62.9 billion.