APPLE MUSIC KEY TO COMPANY'S Q4

Apple’s fiscal 2016 fourth quarter closed with a strong September, but the period’s revenue dipped $4.6b to $46.9b. Its Services business revenue rose 24% from 2015 to $6.3b with App Store revenue—driven by Apple Music—up 22%.

“We’re thrilled with the customer response to iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus and Apple Watch Series 2, as well as the incredible momentum of our Services business, where revenue grew 24 percent to set another all-time record,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO.

Luca Maestri, Apple’s CFO, had a positive spin on the quarter. “We are pleased to have generated $16.1b in operating cash flow, a new record for the September quarter. We also returned $9.3b to investors through dividends and share repurchases during the quarter and have now completed over $186b of our capital return program.”

For the fiscal 2017 first quarter, which runs 9/25 through Christmas, Apple predicts revenue between $76b and $78b; gross margin around 38%; and operating expenses of around $7b.