Apple posts strongest sales growth in four years, shares surge higher

Apple’s biggest surprise was not just the size of its sales rebound, but how quickly the market turned it into a vote of confidence. The company reported fiscal second-quarter revenue of $111.2 billion, up 17% from a year earlier, and diluted earnings per share of $2.01, up 22%, sending shares 3.6% higher in early trading as investors latched onto the strongest quarterly growth in more than four years.

The results showed an Apple still drawing buyers even as broader consumer electronics demand remained soft and memory-chip costs climbed across the industry. Apple said the March quarter set records for total company revenue, iPhone revenue and EPS, while services revenue reached a new all-time high. iPhone revenue came in at about $57 billion, and the iPhone 17 family was the most popular lineup in company history, underscoring the pull of the company’s premium hardware cycle.

The strength extended beyond the flagship phone. Mac revenue was $8.4 billion, services brought in $30.98 billion, and revenue grew in every geographic region. Greater China stood out with 28% growth, giving the quarter a key international lift just as Apple faces pressure from supply constraints and higher component costs. Apple said those constraints affected both the March and June quarters, and it warned that the Mac supply-demand imbalance could last for several months.

Investors also got a forward view that still pointed to growth, even if the next few months carry more cost pressure. Apple said June-quarter revenue would rise 14% to 17% year over year, with gross margin expected between 47.5% and 48.5%. Tim Cook said rising memory costs would increasingly weigh on the company beginning in June, a reminder that the quarter’s beat did not erase the risk from inflation in key inputs.

At the same time, Apple used the earnings release to reinforce its capital-return discipline. The board authorized a new $100 billion share repurchase program and raised the quarterly dividend 4% to $0.27 per share. The dividend is payable May 14, 2026, to shareholders of record as of May 11, 2026.

But the largest question around Apple remains one that no buyback can answer. The company said Cook would transition to executive chairman on Sept. 1, 2026, with hardware chief John Ternus becoming chief executive. That succession announcement gives Apple a clear handoff, yet the market’s immediate response suggests something more fragile: confidence still rests on the assumption that the next act can preserve the same product momentum that lifted this quarter.