Apple shares shoot up in after-hours trading after company shatters earnings expectations

Yesterday, Apple CEO Tim Cook was being grilled by a Congressional subcommittee.

Today, he's the toast of Wall Street after his company's quarterly earnings report shattered analysts' expectations.

Apple shares closed at US$384.76 on the New York Stock Exchange.

But in after-hours trading, following the earnings report, the share price jumped to US$408.12 (as of this writing).

That's a 6.07 percent rise in the two hours since markets closed.

The Cupertino, California–based tech giant announced a 4:1 stock split, effective August 31.

Quarterly revenue reached US$59.7 billion, a jump of 11 percent over the same three-month period last year.

Revenue from iPhone sals rose to US$26.42 billion, far exceeding estimates of US$22.37 billion.

Quarterly net income was US$11.3 billion, up from $10 billion in the same quarter of 2019.

“Apple’s record June quarter was driven by double-digit growth in both products and services and growth in each of our geographic segments,” Cook said in a company statement. “In uncertain times, this performance is a testament to the important role our products play in our customers’ lives and to Apple’s relentless innovation.

"This is a challenging moment for our communities, and, from Apple’s new $100 million Racial Equity and Justice Initiative to a new commitment to be carbon neutral by 2030, we’re living the principle that what we make and do should create opportunity and leave the world better than we found it.”

Amazon also posted big numbers

Apple shareholders weren't the only ones celebrating today.

Amazon also reported stellar quarterly results after the closing bell.

Net sales rose 40 percent to reach US$88.9 billion in the second quarter. That compared to US$63.4 billion in the same quarter of 2019.

Amazone net income reached US$5.2 billion in the second quarter, doubling the figure achieved in the same quarter last year.

CEO Jeff Bezos said that the company spent US$4 billion on "incremental COVID-19-related costs" over the three-month period, as well as a "thank you bonus of over $500 million to front-line employees and delivery partners".

“We’ve created over 175,000 new jobs since March and are in the process of bringing 125,000 of these employees into regular, full-time positions," Bezos added. "And third-party sales again grew faster this quarter than Amazon’s first-party sales."

Amazon shares closed at US$3,051.88 on NASDAQ but like Apple, also shot up in after-hours trading.

They currently stand at  US$3,223.75.

Facebook prospers

A third U.S. tech giant, Facebook, has also seen its share price rise in after-hours trading following release of its quarterly earnings report.

It closed at US$234.50 on NASDAQ today. As of this writing, institutional investors have pushed it up to US$248.75.

Facebook posted net income of nearly $5.2 billion over the last three-month period, compared to US$2.6 billion in the same quarter of 2019.

Quarterly revenues reached nearly US$18.7 billion, up from US$16.9 billion in the same quarter last year.

Alphabet flatlines

The four big tech company to report earnings was Alphabet, the parent of Google. Its quarterly revenue fell slightly to US$38.3 billion, compared to US$38.9 billion over the same period in 2019. 

Net income fell even further, dropping from US$9.9 billion in the second quarter last year to $7 billion in the most recent quarter. 

In after-hours trading, Google shares rose less than $7 to reach US$1,546.