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Apple guides to $154–158 billion December quarter, with supply as the cap

Apple guides to $154–158 billion December quarter, with supply as the cap — Newsmesis editorial illustration
— Newsmesis illustration

What happened

Apple reported fiscal fourth-quarter 2026 revenue of $114.5 billion, up 12% from a year earlier, with net profit of $30.71 billion, and said it expects December-quarter revenue to grow 7% to 10%. Chief Financial Officer Kevan Parekh called that outlook the company's best view "of constrained supply" and said he expects the best revenue quarter in company history. Separately, The Information reported that Apple's tabletop home robot, whose hardware has been finished for about two years, may slip to 2028 because the software is not ready.

What we know

9to5Mac9to5mac.comThe Verge×212
  • Apple's fiscal Q4 2026 revenue rose 12% year over year to $114.5 billion, and net profit was $30.71 billion, per 9to5Mac and The Verge.
  • iPhone revenue was $57.58 billion, up 17% year over year, after Apple launched the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max without a standard model and raised prices on older models, per The Verge.
  • Parekh guided December-quarter revenue growth of 7% to 10% and gross margin of 45% to 46%, citing higher memory costs and Siri AI ramp costs as margin pressure, per 9to5Mac.
  • Apple's outlook assumes current global tariff rates and policies stay in effect and the macroeconomic outlook does not worsen, per 9to5Mac.
  • Mac revenue grew 24% to $10.79 billion, services reached $31.57 billion, and iPad revenue fell 10% to $6.23 billion, per The Verge. Apple also cited ongoing shortages of the new iPhone Duo folding phone, per 9to5Mac.

What we don't know yet

  • Whether the home robot (codename J595) will launch in 2027 or 2028. This rests on a single report by The Information, relayed by The Verge, and Apple has not confirmed it.
  • The robot's price and name. The Information's reporting points to roughly $1,000 or more and a likely 'HomeView Ultra' name, but the name is a prediction by former employees.
  • How much the iPhone Duo's preorder sales will add to results. The Verge says they are not included in this quarter's figures.
  • Whether supply constraints and memory costs ease enough to affect the guided revenue range or margins.

Why it matters

Apple is guiding to a record holiday quarter while saying supply, not demand, is the limit, and memory costs are squeezing margins. That affects the pricing and availability of iPhone, Mac and iPad over the holidays and shows how component costs are reaching device makers' results.

Claims

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Why you can trust this story

67%

Source map · 2 outlets / 3 articles

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  • 2 independent origins / 3 sources
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Verification ledger · 6

  • Claim: Apple's fiscal Q4 2026 revenue was $114.5 billion, up 12% year over year.
    Status: ConfirmedVerification trailVerifiedChecked by verification engine

    At least one checkable detail was matched against the full text of the cited source.

  • Claim: Apple's iPhone revenue was $57.58 billion, up 17% year over year.
    Status: ConfirmedVerification trailVerifiedChecked by verification engine

    At least one checkable detail was matched against the full text of the cited source.

  • Claim: Apple guided December-quarter revenue growth of 7% to 10%, which it expects to be its best quarter ever.
    Status: ConfirmedVerification trailVerifiedChecked by verification engine

    At least one checkable detail was matched against the full text of the cited source.

  • Claim: Apple cited higher memory costs as pressure on gross margin.
    Status: ConfirmedVerification trailVerifiedChecked by verification engine

    At least one checkable detail was matched against the full text of the cited source.

  • Claim: Apple's smart home robot launch has been delayed to 2027 at the earliest or possibly 2028, per The Information.
    Status: UnconfirmedVerification trailUnverifiedChecked by verification engine

    No automated check against the source text is available.

  • Claim: The robot's hardware has been finished for about two years but its software is not ready, per The Information.
    Status: UnconfirmedVerification trailUnverifiedChecked by verification engine

    No automated check against the source text is available.

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