Tech giants report mixed results despite bright outlook

Five technology giants reported mixed earnings results Thursday, a sign of varying fortunes as they try to rebound from an pandemic-related economic slowdown earlier this year.

While 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 after-market trading.

On Wednesday, the CEOs of Facebook, Google and Twitter testified before the Senate Commerce Committee, rebuffing accusations of anti-conservative bias and promising to aggressively defend their platforms from being used to sow chaos in next week’s election.

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, although analysts expect it will bounce back with a huge quarter during the October-December quarter that includes the holiday shopping season.

Apple’s revenue rose to $64.7 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet Research had braced for a dip to $63.6 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 more than 4% in extended trading. Investors may have been jarred by a significant decline in iPhone sales, which plunged 21% from last year to $26.4 billion. Apple offset that erosion with strong sales of its services, including its music and streaming services, as well as its wireless ear buds and internet-connected watch.

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