Apple has released its first quarter results which shows the company's adjusted earnings per share were $1.53, narrowly beating expectations of $1.50. Revenue reached $90.75 billion, slightly surpassing the estimated $90.33 billion.

While the iPhone, Mac, and Services units exceeded expectations, the iPad fell short with revenue dropping 17% YoY. That said, the timing of this particular report isn't ideal for Apple's iPad line coming only days before a scheduled May 7th event at which the company is expected to clarify and refresh their iPad line-up - a product that over the years has shown little incentive for users to upgrade.

Revenue from Greater China reached $16.37 billion, surpassing the cautious estimated $15.87 billion. However sales in this market dropped by 8% prompting Tim Cook to draw attention to these figures in order to point out that iPhone sales were actually up in "mainland" China. "I maintain a great view of China in the long term," he said in their subsequent earnings call.

Only a sparse mention of Apple Vision Pro adds to uncertainty surrounding its success after dwindling demands forced the company to cut shipments to half. CEO Tim Cook served up, “During the quarter, we were thrilled to launch Apple Vision Pro and to show the world the potential that spatial computing unlocks."

Most notable was the clear message of bullish confidence that the company wanted to project despite the as-predicted/meh results on show. The company will be engaging in a $110 billion share buyback program - their biggest ever - and raising the share dividends.

"Given the continued confidence we have in our business now and into the future, our board has authorized today an additional $110 billion for share repurchases, as we maintain our goal of getting to net cash neutral over time. We are also raising our dividend by 4% to 25 cents per share of common stock, and we continue to plan for annual increases in the dividend going forward, as we have done for the last 12 years."

It's clear that Apple feel that they have something up their sleeves.

All eyes on WWDC

This earnings report marks the final financial update before Apple's WWDC conference next month, where the company traditionally reveals its software upgrades and plans, rather than showing new hardware. This year it's expected to unveil its strategy for integrating generative AI features across its platforms - something that it has so far kept under wraps and come under criticism for by not revealing earlier. 

“I don’t wanna get in front of our announcements, obviously. I would just say that we see generative AI as a very key opportunity across our products and we believe that we have advantages that set us apart there, and we’ll be talking more about it as we go through the weeks ahead," said Cook.

While the company's latest results show a 10% decline in iPhone sales worldwide, except for Europe, Apple clearly remains optimistic. If the AI rumours come true and we see on-device AI being a major feature of September's iPhone 16 - along with new utility and features that use it (not least a hugely improved Siri) - then 2024 could become a main upgrade year. 

The last real upgrade spike came with the introduction of 5G to the iPhone line with the iPhone 12. If AI does become a key feature of iPhone 16 the new device could hold the key to revamping the company's outlook and strategy for the future.