Investors need to constantly remind themselves the share market is a voting machine that measured popularity – not a measure of value. Mr Market either over- or under-shoots and did so again after quarterly results last night from Amazon and Apple. The companies disappointed on the most superficial measure triggering a 5% price fall in post-close trading.
Amazon, a company that focuses on the long-term, emphasises the point. Wall Street analysts expected $111.55bn in third quarter revenues. Amazon reported $110.8bn – a “miss” of 0.7% on this externally set target. Annual growth was 15%, the slowest in six years. Rational observers would point to the base effect of a lockdown-fuelled surge a year earlier. Not Mr Market.
The reaction to Apple’s numbers is equally baffling. The Street set a revenue target of $84.25bn. Apple delivered $83.4bn, again less than 1% below analysts’ forecast. On the upside, Apple’s net income for the quarter, at $20.5bn, was $300m above Wall Street’s expectations. Unlike growth-driven Amazon, for dividend-paying, share buy-backing Apple, earnings really do matter. Not this time it seems.
___STEADY_PAYWALL___
Dig into the detail, and as a long-term investor there was a lot to like about the numbers – just like there was from other portfolio stalwarts Microsoft and Spotify, whose results Mr Market loved (see stories below from our partners at The Wall Street Journal). At Amazon, AWS handily beat revenue expectations and delivered a 40% profit improvement to almost $5bn. At Apple, iPhones sales growth rocketed 47% and the overall ecosystem expanded dramatically with paying subscribers now just under 750m up from 660m six months ago. I like. So should you. Today’s dip is an opportunity to accumulate.
More for you today (click on linked headline to access) –Â
* Apple Warns of Supply Chain Woes While Amazon Faces Increased Labour Costs. Investors remain watchful of how pandemic-era leaders manage disruptions as effects drag on
* Microsoft’s New Normal will need to stick. A BizNews portfolio darling, the software giant beat Wall Street’s consensus for the 11th successive quarter on Tuesday night. Everything keeps going right.
*Â Spotify Ad business boosted by podcasts. Strong user growth resumed in the third quarter, with the audio streaming service reporting overall active users and paying subscribers both up 19%
(The third BizNews Investment conference will be held at the Champagne Sports resort in the Central Drakensberg from 1-4 March 2022. Secure your spot by clicking here.)
