As with other units in the Philippine Army, the force was only partially trained, and suffered from a serious shortage of equipment, no artillery pieces, and limited ammunition.

The raid was somewhat of a fiasco, as the Japanese pilots did not even recognize William B. Preston as a warship and only managed to destroy two of her PBY-4s (the other was away on a mission at the time).

[2] The Japanese invasion force under the overall command of admiral Raizo Tanaka departed Palau on 17 December in 5 transports, escorted by the light cruiser Jintsu and six destroyers (Amatsukaze, Hatsukaze, Kuroshio, Oyashio, Hayashio and Natsushio), with the aircraft carrier Ryūjō and the seaplane carrier Chitose, and the cruisers Nachi, Haguro and Myōkō providing distant cover.

The advance landings by the Japanese in southern Mindanao and the Sulu island marked further success for them in the overall campaign in the Philippines, and helped secure the region for their invasion of Borneo and further expansions in 1942 such as to the Netherlands East Indies.

[1] Davao Force retreated towards Bukidnon on Jungle trails for 14 days before reaching Malaybalay with just eating monkey meat and vegetables.