“Shares of Apple Inc. surged more than 8% ahead of Thursday’s open bell, playing off financial results showing a first-quarter profit that topped investor expectations,” Rex Crum and Michelle Donley report for MarketWatch.
“Late Wednesday, Apple said that it earned $1.61 billion, or $1.78 a share, as sales reached $10.17 billion in the quarter ended Dec. 27. During the year-ago first quarter, the company earned $1.58 billion, or $1.76 a share, on revenue of $9.6 billion,” Crum and Donley report.
“In a statement, Chief Executive Steve Jobs said that Apple was able to report $10 billion in quarterly revenue for the first time, ‘even in these economically challenging times,'” Crum and Donley report.
“During the December quarter, Apple reported it sold 22.7 million iPods… Apple still appears to be gaining ground in the markets for personal computers and mobile phones… Macintosh computer sales reached 2.5 million units, a 9% increase from a year ago… Apple also said it sold 4.36 million iPhones during the quarter, up 88% from the prior year’s first quarter.”
Full article here.
