Apple's Quarterly Spending Points to Major Product Launches, Significant Revenue Growth

Looking at Apple's quarterly SEC quarterly filing, Katy Huberty of Morgan Stanley believes Apple's revenue is poised to explode in the coming quarters. Huberty based her prediction on increases in Apple's off-balance sheet commitments, which have a historical correlation with revenue growth.

Off-balance sheet commitments are those investments in components and services that are involved in the mass production and launch of new devices. These line items include component purchases, manufacturing process equipment investments, advertising, and other services. Huberty notes that Apple's total spending in these areas has climbed 46 percent yearly and 36 percent quarterly in fiscal Q3 2014, making last quarter's jump the largest spending increase since Apple first launched the iPhone in 2007.

huberty-off-balance sheet commitments
Huberty, not surprisingly, attributes this spending increase to Apple's iPhone 6 and iWatch wearable, both of which are expected to launch later this year. These new products, along with services such as mobile payments, could accelerate growth and boost margins.

Apple has the opportunity to take share in slower growth smartphone and tablet markets with larger screens and new services. New product categories like iWatch, and services like payments could further boost growth.

Apple is rumored to be launching its next-generation iPhone 6, refreshed iPad models and a new iWatch smartwatch later this year. The company may also update its Mac hardware to coincide with the debut of OS X Yosemite.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch 10, iPad
Related Forums: iPad, iPhone

Popular Stories

CarPlay Hero

Apple Releases Wireless CarPlay Fix

Wednesday April 16, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed. Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles." If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Triad

Apple's 20th Anniversary iPhone May Finally Go All Screen

Tuesday April 15, 2025 6:31 am PDT by
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself. Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday April 15, 2025 7:37 am PDT by
The first iOS 19 beta is less than two months away, and there are already a handful of new features that are expected with the update. Apple should release the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September. Below, we recap the key...
maxresdefault

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Sunday April 13, 2025 7:52 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iOS 18

Apple Releases iOS 18.4.1 With Bug Fixes

Wednesday April 16, 2025 10:11 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.4.1 and iPadOS 18.4.1, minor updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that came out last September. iOS 18.4.1 and iPadOS 18.4.1 come two weeks after the launch of iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. There have been complaints about ...
tvOS 18 Thumb 1

Apple Releases tvOS 18.4.1

Wednesday April 16, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released tvOS 18.4.1, a minor update to the tvOS 18 operating system that came out last September. tvOS 18.4.1 comes two weeks after Apple released tvOS 18.4, and it is available for the Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD models. tvOS 18.4.1 can be downloaded using the Settings app on the ‌Apple TV‌. Open up Settings and go to System > Software Update to get the new software....
iPhone Security Feature 25

Five iPhone Security Features You Should Be Using

Wednesday April 16, 2025 4:15 pm PDT by
Apple has quite a few security features that it's added to iPhones, iPads, and Macs over the years. Now more than ever, it's important to make sure you're taking advantage of the built-in security tools that are available to keep yourself and your data safe, so we've rounded up a list of the most important options. If you don't already have these enabled, you might want to consider turning...

Top Rated Comments

ggibson913 Avatar
140 months ago
I am a much bigger fan of the old Apple staggered releases. IPad in March, iPhone in June, etc. . Not a fan of the dump in the fourth quarter.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sulpfiction Avatar
140 months ago
Really excited about the iTime.

If it's called iTime, it's iTime to hire someone new in the naming dept.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Alphabetize Avatar
140 months ago
I miss the days of product announcements every few months or so!
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
pedromcm.pm Avatar
140 months ago
Greed

Jesus, what is wrong with all of these "analysts"? Too dumb to be real journalists? That bad at math and physics so engineering is out of the question?

I mean, isn't a 600 billion $ valuation and the title of most value public traded company and 8 billion $ on a slow quarter good enough?

It's so boring... All of those attempts to manipulate the stock price. Apple is fine. In fact, they are better than everybody else in the tech industry. Why focus on trying to bring them down instead of focussing on making lesser companies like Samsung Electronics, Asus, Lenovo, LG, HTC, etc. up their respective games?

I mean, LG sells 15 million devices this quarter and makes 100 million $ in profits. What's the point, then? What's the point in selling gazilion devices and not make any money? Focus on Amazon FFS.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
donnaw Avatar
140 months ago
Jesus, what is wrong with all of these "analysts"? Too dumb to be real journalists? That bad at math and physics so engineering is out of the question?

I mean, isn't a 600 billion $ valuation and the title of most value public traded company and 8 billion $ on a slow quarter good enough?

It's so boring... All of those attempts to manipulate the stock price. Apple is fine. In fact, they are better than everybody else in the tech industry. Why focus on trying to bring them down instead of focussing on making lesser companies like Samsung Electronics, Asus, Lenovo, LG, HTC, etc. up their respective games?

I mean, LG sells 15 million devices this quarter and makes 100 million $ in profits. What's the point, then? What's the point in selling gazilion devices and not make any money? Focus on Amazon FFS.

Just one small point, an 'analyst' is not a 'journalist'. An analyst's job is to take information from both the public sector and possibily other 'sources' (such as supply chain manufacturers) and try to predict growth or lack of growth in a company the point being to aid investors. An analyst makes their money on just how accurate their predictions are. Some are very good, because they study past actions as a way to predict the future or because they have 'other sources' where they get some inside information. Good analysts are very much in demand. They can try to manipulate stock prices but unless they are really good and have a great track record it's not really possible. Different investors listen to different analysts.

A journalist's job is to report news, period. Don't confuse the two.

As for the rest of your post, I don't get what you're trying to say. This is simply information and an observation by one analyst. Some people might use it to invest, some might use it to divest but a good investor will do more homework and make up their own mind.

Sorry, I just don't get the 'rant'.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bushido Avatar
140 months ago
dont care about the watch, gimme a new apple tv or at least a new interface
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)