Apple Inc. (AAPL) is set to report its fiscal second-quarter earnings after the market close today, April 30, 2026, with Wall Street expecting earnings per share (EPS) of $1.95 on revenue of approximately $109 billion, representing roughly 15% year-over-year growth. The previous quarter saw record revenue of $143.8 billion and EPS of $2.84, driven by a 23% surge in iPhone sales and 14% growth in Services revenue.
Key areas of focus for investors include iPhone demand in China, where local competition from players like Huawei has intensified. Data from Counterpoint Research indicated iPhone shipments in China rose 20% year-over-year in the first quarter despite an overall market decline. Greater China revenue is expected to increase 19% to $19 billion in Q2. The company’s AI strategy, particularly improvements to Siri and deeper integration with ChatGPT via the iPhone camera in iOS 27, is another critical topic. However, major AI announcements are not anticipated before the Worldwide Developers Conference in June.
Apple also confirmed that long-time CEO Tim Cook will step down on September 1, 2026, to be succeeded by hardware engineering chief John Ternus. Analyst reactions have been mixed, with Wedbush’s Dan Ives noting the timing raises questions, while Raymond James’ Melissa Fairbanks sees it as a shift toward a hardware-led innovation era.
Margin pressures from rising memory costs are also in focus. Apple has so far avoided significant price increases, which analysts say could help the company gain market share. Product gross margins are expected at 37.6%, up from 35.9% a year earlier. Options traders are pricing in a 3.85% post-earnings move, more than double Apple’s average of the past four quarters.
UBS analyst David Vogt raised his price target to $287, maintaining a Hold rating. The broader consensus is Moderate Buy with an average price target of $299.80. Apple stock was trading around $273.70 ahead of the report, up about 1.3% on the day but with less than 1% gain year-to-date.
