Apple Inc.’s fourth quarter profit and revenue far exceeded analysts’ expectations, fueled by record sales of the iPhone (News - Alert) and Mac, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company reported this week.
Apple (News - Alert) posted revenue of $9.87 billion and a net quarterly profit of $1.67 billion, or $1.82 per diluted share. These results compare to revenue of $7.9 billion and net quarterly profit of $1.14 billion, or $1.26 per diluted share. Shares rose 7.5 percent to more than $204 in extended trade, Reuters (News - Alert) reported late Monday.
“We are thrilled to have sold more Macs and iPhones than in any previous quarter,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s iconic CEO, in a statement. “We’ve got a very strong lineup for the holiday season and some really great new products in the pipeline for 2010.”
Apple shot up 6 percent after it trounced estimates with its fourth-quarter profit after selling 7.4 million iPhones and more than 3 million Macintosh computers, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
Mike McGuire, an analyst from Gartner (News - Alert) Research, said “it would appear that this is an increasingly mobile world for Apple.”
According to company officials, Apple sold 3.05 million Macintosh computers during the quarter, representing a 17 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter. The company sold 10.2 million iPods during the quarter, representing an 8 percent unit decline from the year-ago quarter. Apple sold 7.4 million iPhones in the quarter, representing 7 percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter.
“This shows 185 percent revenue growth for the iPhone. In light of this current economic situation that would seem to be an astounding number,” McGuire added.
In June 2009 Apple selling iPhone 3GS, the third-generation iPhone. Unit sales of iPhones continued to be significant in the quarter ended Sept. 26, 2009, with 7.4 million iPhones sold.
In July, TMCnet’s Michael Dinan reported that Apple posted a 15 percent rise in profits, to $1.23 billion, for the three-month period ended June 27. At that time, the company’s chief financial officer, Peter Oppenheimer, said he was “pleased” to report cash flow of $2.3 billion.
“Looking ahead to the fourth fiscal quarter of 2009, we expect revenue in the range of about $8.7 billion to $8.9 billion and we expect diluted earnings per share in the range of about $1.18 to $1.23,” he said. Clearly, Apple exceeded even its own calculations.
In related news, Texas Instruments (News - Alert) Inc.’s results also beat expectations, and the chip maker said its fourth quarter earnings should be stronger than current forecasts, Reuters reported. Erin Harrison is a Senior Editor with TMC. To read more of her articles, please visit her columnist page.Edited by
Erin Harrison