Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) delivered a blockbuster fiscal third quarter for 2026, posting revenue of $109.4 billion, a 16% increase compared to the same period a year earlier.
Earnings per share climbed 29% to $2.02, while gross margin expanded significantly from 46.5% to 50.1%, partially aided by a tariff benefit.
iPhone sales surged 22% during the quarter, reinforcing the company’s position as the dominant force in the global premium smartphone market.
Mac sales also impressed, rising 29% year over year, signaling that consumer appetite for Apple hardware remains robust across multiple product categories.
The results arrived at a historic moment, as Apple stock reached a $5 trillion market cap for the first time, coinciding with Tim Cook’s final earnings call as CEO.
Cook handed leadership responsibilities to John Ternus, who now faces the considerable challenge of sustaining a company that has returned more than 2,600% to shareholders over Cook’s tenure since 2011.
On his final earnings call, Cook highlighted the new Siri voice assistant unveiled at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference in June, which remains in testing ahead of a release expected within the next few months.
Cook also addressed Apple’s ongoing investments in Apple Intelligence and the company’s exploration of options for running micro-large language models directly on personal iPhones.
Apple’s decision to contract with Alphabet rather than build its own AI infrastructure has drawn praise from the market, with Apple paying Alphabet $1 billion annually while Alphabet itself plans to spend up to $205 billion on capital expenditure this year alone.
Despite the strong quarterly performance, the market expressed disappointment over Apple’s fourth-quarter guidance, tempering some of the enthusiasm that had built ahead of the earnings release.
Apple remains a long-term investment proposition rather than a vehicle for short-term gains, and the Ternus era is expected to continue the disciplined, shareholder-focused approach that defined Cook’s fifteen-year run at the top.
