Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) CEO Tim Cook said during the second quarter earnings conference call that he looks forward to welcoming Angela Ahrendts to the company. Cook said Ahrendts will join the iPhone maker’s executive team next week. Apple hired the former Burberry Group plc chief executive in October last year to head its retail operations. But a report last week said Ahrendts may remain in her current role at the British luxury fashion group until June. But Tim Cook’s statement has cleared the air.
Apple’s retail unit has been operating without a dedicated leader since 2012
Tim Cook reviewed the tech giant’s retail operations, including the new stores in Turkey and Brazil, before saying that Ahrendts will join Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) next week. The Cupertino-based company’s retail division has been operating without a dedicated leader since October 2012, when the company fired John Browett. Apple’s retail unit currently reports directly to Tim Cook.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) reported better-than-expected second quarter earnings yesterday, sending the stock up by 7.67% to $564.99 in early trading session Thursday. The iPhone maker reported sales of $45.6 billion and EPS of $11.62, beating the Wall Street consensus of $43.53 billion in sales and $10.18 in EPS. Apple sold 43.7 million iPhones during the quarter, well above the consensus forecast of 38 million units. The tech giant hiked its quarterly dividend by 8% to $3.29. Apple also announced an additional share repurchase of $30 billion.
Apple CEO thanks outgoing CFO Oppenheimer
Tim Cook also thanked Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s outgoing chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer, who announced his retirement in March. Oppenheimer has served as Apple’s CFO for about a decade. The company’s sales have grown from $8 billion to $171 billion under his tenure. Cook said Oppenheimer’s hard work and expertise have been instrumental in Apple’s massive success.
Cook added that Oppenheimer has never missed guidance as Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s CFO. Experts said that he never missed guidance because Apple has been extremely conservative in predicting its revenues and earnings. Apple’s VP of finance and corporate controller Luca Maestri will succeed Oppenheimer in September. Maestri joined the iPhone maker last year.
