Technology giants give mixed results
Five technology giants reported mixed earnings results Thursday.
Although all five — Amazon, Google parent Alphabet, Facebook, Apple and Twitter — exceeded analyst expectations, gloomy forecasts and other uncertainties led to share- price declines for all but Alphabet in aftermarket trading.
Apple
Apple didn’t get its usual late- September surge in sales from its latest iPhone models but still managed to eke out a slight increase in revenue during the July- September quarter, although profits fell.
Production problems lingering from factory shutdowns during the onset of the pandemic led to the iPhone delay.
Apple’s revenue rose to $ 64.7 billion. Profit, meanwhile, dropped 7% from the year- ago quarter to $ 12.7 billion. But earnings per share amounted to 73 cents, above the average estimate of 70 cents among analysts polled by FactSet. Apple’s stock dropped nearly 5% in extended trading. Investors apparently were jarred by unexpectedly drops in revenue from both the iPhone and sales in China.
Alphabet
Alphabet returned to robust financial growth during the summer.
In the previous quarter, it suffered its first- ever quarterly decline in revenue amid the economic slowdown stemming from the COVID- 19 pandemic.
The company’s revenue for the July- September period rose 14% from the same time last year to $ 46.2 billion.
Its profit soared 59% to $ 11.2 billion, or $ 16.40 per share. Both figure easily surpassed analyst estimates, lifting Alphabet’s stock price by 9% in
Thursday’s extended trading
Facebook’s alreadymassive profit and revenue continued to grow along with its worldwide user base.
Facebook earned $ 7.85 billion, or $ 2.71 per share, in the July- September period, well above the $ 2.18 that analysts expected and up 29% from a year earlier. Revenue grew 22% to $ 21.22 billion, higher than the $ 19.8 billion analysts were predicting.
Facebook shares slid less than half a percent to $ 279.55 in after- hours trading.
Amazon
Amazon continued to benefit from shopping trends during the pandemic, reporting record profit and revenue during the third quarter. The company reported net income of $ 6.3 billion in the three months ending Sept. 30, nearly tripling from the previous- year period.
Earnings per share came to $ 12.37, about $ 5 more than Wall Street analysts expected. Revenue soared 37% to $ 96.1 billion, also beating expectations. Shares nevertheless fell 1.3% in aftermarket trading.
Twitter posted muchstrongerthan- expected third- quarter results, thanks to surging advertiser demand.
The San Francisco company earned $ 28.66 million, or four cents per share, in the July- September period.
That’s down 22% from a year earlier, due to higher expenses in part related to COVID- 19. Excluding one- time items, earnings were 19 cents per share. Revenue grew 14% to 936.2 million from $ 823.7 million.
Twitter’s stock fell $ 6.06, or 11.6%, to $ 46.37 in after- hours trading.