Apple expects its highest revenue yet in Q4, but memory prices will hurt profits

During an earnings call on November 2, the company's CFO Kevan Parekh said that Apple is expecting Q4 this year to be the best quarter in the history of the company in terms of revenue. The fiscal Q4 2026 (ending in September) results point to a very optimistic near future for the company, despite the supply chain constraints, rising component prices and inventory shortages. The forecast comes amid Apple's record-breaking numbers reported in Q3 2026.

Apple admitted that the macroeconomic factors are hard to predict and currency exchange might be the biggest hurdle that the company will need to overcome. Profit margins are at risk due to rising RAM prices and the ongoing supply chain constraints. The stronger-than-expected demand for Mac, iPad and the new iPhone Duo caught Apple off guard, so the inventory shortages have the potential to hold Apple's revenue stream back until December.

For the holiday quarter, the company predicts that revenue should fall between $153.82 billion and $158.13 billion, which is about $10 billion to $14.4 billion more than a year ago. That revenue grows thanks partially to an 8% to 9% increase in services revenue. Additionally, the CFO noted that the gross margin is expected to sit between 45% and 46%, while operating expenses will fall between $20.4 billion and $20.8 billion.

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