Apple has announced its financial results for the fourth quarter of its 2026 fiscal year, achieving record quarterly revenue of $114.48 billion, an annual increase of approximately 12% compared to the same quarter last year. This earnings call was not merely an occasion to review the usual astronomical figures; it held exceptional significance as the first appearance of the new CEO, John Ternus, leading the earnings call. He inaugurated a new leadership phase, capping off the best fiscal year in the company’s history with total annual revenue reaching $478.8 billion.
A New Era in Management and Record-Breaking Figures
The earnings call witnessed a notable shift in management style; new CEO John Ternus introduced Chief Operating Officer Sabih Khan, announcing that he will participate regularly in future earnings calls. This move seems entirely understandable and logical. Former CEO Tim Cook was an operations man par excellence, having spent nearly a decade managing operations and supply chains before taking the helm of the company. In contrast, Ternus comes from a strong hardware and engineering background, making him prefer the presence of the COO to address complex inquiries related to supply chains and production.
During the call, Ternus emphasized that the company is closing the year with the strongest product lineup in its history. He pointed to the launch of the iPhone Duo, which he described as the most transformative since the launch of the first iPhone, alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models, as well as a new generation of home hardware and the introduction of touch capabilities to Mac devices for the first time, supported by new Siri and artificial intelligence capabilities.
iPhone and Mac: The Primary Drivers of Exceptional Growth
The company’s overall growth was driven by massive leaps in the iPhone and Mac sectors, which offset the slight decline in other segments. The iPhone sector achieved historic revenue of $57.58 billion, a 17.5% annual growth, crossing the $50 billion mark for the first time in a September quarter. Remarkably, this strong growth was achieved even though the quarter saw only about two weeks of sales for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, while the bulk of summer sales relied on the iPhone 17 family. Meanwhile, the standard iPhone 18 has not yet been released, and the launch of the iPhone Duo was delayed until October.
The Mac computer sector was, in turn, the undisputed star of the fourth quarter, with its revenue jumping 23.7% to reach $10.79 billion, crossing the $10 billion mark for the first time. This significant momentum is partly due to the launch of the MacBook Neo, in addition to the late August announcement of the Mac mini and Mac Studio, which are seeing huge demand from companies specializing in artificial intelligence, as opening pre-orders early allowed Apple to record strong revenue over consecutive weeks.
iPad Performance and the Wearables Market
On the other hand, the iPad sector recorded a 10.4% decline with revenue of $6.23 billion, a decline that is not surprising given the quiet updates this year. The iPad Air with the M4 processor was merely a spec bump, while the budget-friendly iPad has not yet arrived, and the iPad mini with an OLED screen was only released recently, meaning its sales impact will only appear in the next quarter’s results.
As for the Wearables, Home, and Accessories category, its revenue reached $8.30 billion, a 7.9% year-over-year decrease. Although pre-orders for the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 opened in September alongside the new Pro phones, it was not enough to reverse the downward trend this sector has seen in the September quarter since 2022.
Services Surpass $31 Billion and AI Trends
The Services sector continued its steady growth, achieving an unprecedented record of $31.57 billion, a 9.8% increase. Although this growth is slightly lower than the pace of the previous three years, which exceeded double digits, it represents a strong profit pillar. This rise is attributed to the expansion of iCloud+ bundles and their integration with Apple TV and Apple Arcade services in a hundred countries and regions around the world, in addition to the introduction of the new AppleCare One family plan, which allows coverage for all family devices for a unified monthly subscription of $50.
John Ternus hinted that the future will bring additional paid features linked to iCloud+, including advanced usage tiers for Siri and Apple Intelligence capabilities, confirming that the full benefit of these features is still in its infancy and will see more precise marketing expansion in the coming periods.
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