Apple (AAPL 1.93%) shareholders should have Jan. 29 circled on their calendars, since the company will be providing fiscal 2026 first-quarter results. With Apple stock sluggish over the past few weeks, the update could have a strong impact on its price movement.
Let's see what management could tell investors and whether or not it makes sense to buy Apple stock before the report.
Image source: Apple.
Is it all about Apple Intelligence?
The market has been unenthused about Apple's AI updates over the past few months. Its signature platform, Apple Intelligence, has failed to impress the market, which likely has high expectations from the global leader in tech innovation. It's also up against several major players that are making strong progress.
Management has delayed several important AI functions for a while, and it recently announced a partnership with Alphabet to use its Gemini large language model (LLM) to power more functionality, including an upgraded, conversational Siri tool that could be the feature investors have been waiting for.
Management has said the new Siri, which could be a chatbot-like tool and is being totally revamped, should be ready in spring 2026. Bloomberg reported last week that the new tool goes beyond what was originally promised in the revamp, and it will be embedded into the Apple operating system like Siri. The market gave a lukewarm response to the news, likely because it's waiting to hear more about it from management this week.
Since this is a major reason Apple stock has been depressed, positive news on this front could be a game changer for the stock.
NASDAQ: AAPL
Key Data Points
iPhones, subscriptions, and more
Management has already given some updates about other products. At the end of October, CEO Tim Cook said that new iPhone 17 sales were higher than Wall Street's expectations, and it was only constrained by supply. iPhone sales make up half of Apple's total revenue, and since the iPhone is its premier product, Apple stock often moves in line with iPhone sales. This is even more crucial during the holiday season, when iPhones are a huge seller.
The company also said that 2025 was a record-breaking year for Apple services, with a 36% increase in monthly engagement on AppleTV, and that more than $100 billion in incremental merchant sales were generated through Apple Pay. There were record app store visits between Christmas Eve and New Year's Day, as well as record spending on digital goods and services.
The signs are all pointing to a positive report from Apple, making it likely the stock will jump on the news. But don't buy it for the short-term movement; Apple stock is a strong bet for long-term value.
