Apple Stock Surges 7% After Record-Setting $110B Stock Buyback

Apple stock ( AAPL ) rallied 7% after the company announced a record-setting $110B stock buyback program, marking the largest buyback value ever announced in US history. The move follows Apple's second-quarter earnings, which topped Wall Street's estimates by 22%. The company's board authorized $110 billion in share repurchases, a 22% increase over last year's $90 billion authorization. This marks the largest buyback value ever announced in US history. Apple also reported a revenue of $90.8 billion for the three-month period ended on March 30, despite a 4.3% drop from the year-ago period.

The results came as a relief to investors, as Apple ( AAPL ) has posted sales declines in the past five out of six quarters in the face of a tough smartphone market in China. Last month, Apple ( AAPL ) was overtaken by Samsung as the world's No.1 phone maker, according to the latest data from research firm IDC.

Apple ( AAPL ) did not provide formal guidance for the rest of its fiscal 2024, but finance chief Luca Maestri said the company expected the current quarter will deliver double-digit year-over-year percentage growth in iPad sales. The Services division is also forecast to continue growing, including subscriptions, warranties, licensing fees, and Apple Pay features.

Apple ( AAPL ) reported reported net income of $23.64 billion, or $1.53 per share, down 2% from $24.16 billion, or $1.52 per share, in the year-ago period. iPhone sales fell nearly 10% to $45.96 billion, suggesting weak demand for the latest iPhone, the 15 Pro and Pro Max models, which were released in September. Sales of other Apple products, including its Apple Watch and AirPods headphones, also dropped 10% year-over-year to $7.9 billion.

Mac sales were up 4% to $7.45 billion, attributed to the upgraded M3 chip placed in the company's new MacBook Air models as of March.

Technical Outlook
Apple Inc. ( AAPL ) stock is up 6.37% at the time of writing trading above the 200-day Moving Average (MA) with a Relative Strength Index (RSI) of 67.45 paving the way for further growth. The daily price chart indicates a gapper effect, it appears to be an up-side gap that occurred as a result of the buyback fundamental.