Apple's record quarter comes with a memory price warning

Apple posted a September-quarter record $114.5B, then called memory pricing 'unprecedented.'

For the quarter ended September 26, Apple reported revenue of $114.5 billion, up 12% year over year. According to Apple, the quarter set September-quarter records for total revenue, iPhone revenue and EPS. Net profit was $30.71 billion versus $27.47 billion a year earlier, per The Guardian and 9to5Mac.

Diluted EPS was $2.10, including a $0.05 benefit from tariff refunds. Analysts expected $1.99 on $113.4bn in revenue, per a FactSet poll cited by The Guardian. CEO John Ternus said memory pricing is 'unprecedented' and predicted memory costs this quarter will be even higher than in the previous three months. Per The Guardian, Apple told investors higher memory prices will eat into margins as it competes with datacentres for supply. TechCrunch reports inventory rose 154% to $14.5 billion.

“What we’re seeing with memory pricing right now is unprecedented.”John Ternus, Apple CEO

The facts we checked

According to Apple's earnings release, The Guardian, TechCrunch and 9to5Mac

1. Apple reported fiscal Q4 2026 revenue of $114.5 billion, up 12 percent year over year, for the quarter ended September 26, 2026.Fact · Apple
2. Apple said the quarter set September-quarter records for total revenue, iPhone revenue and EPS, and that Services reached a new all-time high.Fact · Apple
3. Diluted EPS was $2.10, up 14 percent, including a $0.05 favorable impact from tariff refunds. Gross margin was 47.9 percent, including about 1 percentage point from tariff refunds.Figure · Apple
4. Net profit was $30.71 billion, against $27.47 billion a year earlier.Figure · The Guardian, 9to5Mac
5. Analysts on average expected EPS of $1.99 on revenue of $113.4bn, according to a FactSet poll.Reported · The Guardian
6. What we’re seeing with memory pricing right now is unprecedented.Quote · John Ternus, Apple CEO, on the earnings call, via The Guardian
7. Ternus predicted memory costs in the fourth quarter of this year would be even higher than in the previous three months.Reported · The Guardian
8. The Guardian reports Apple told investors higher memory prices will eat into its profit margins, as it competes with datacentres for supply.Reported · The Guardian
9. Ternus said Apple's iPad and MacBook price increases in June and iPhone price increases in September 'provided some offset'.Reported · The Guardian
10. Apple's shares were down 2.75% in after-hours trading.Figure · The Guardian
11. Apple's inventory climbed to $14.5 billion, up 154%.Reported · TechCrunch (headline and summary only)
12. On the earnings call Apple discussed the impact of rising memory costs on profit margins and warned of additional pressure from Siri AI expenses during the holiday quarter.Reported · 9to5Mac (summary only)
13. Fiscal 2026 revenue was an all-time record of $479 billion.Figure · Apple

Sources

• AppleApple reports fourth quarter results
• 9to5MacApple reports Q4 2026 earnings: $114.5 billion in revenue, up 12% [Charts]
• The New York TimesApple’s Profit Grows 12% Despite Component Price Worries
• The GuardianApple warns of ‘unprecedented’ rise in memory chip prices
• TechCrunchApple’s inventory surges 154% as memory chip costs climb
• 9to5MacApple says memory costs and Siri AI will weigh on holiday quarter profit margins