Apple has again announced record profits on the back of another surge in Mac and iPhone sales and a hugely successful first quarter for the iPad.
The company made $4.31 billion profit from revenues totalling $20.24 billion in the three months ending 25 September. Mac sales were up 27% to 3.89 million, just short of the debut figure for the iPad, 4.19 million. Expect that to grow during the current quarter, as the holiday shopping season starts and with availability on a second network in the US.
“Antennagate” appears to have had little impact on phone sales — Apple sold 14.1 million iPhone 4 handsets during the quarter, 91% more than it sold following the launch of the iPhone 3GS last year. Inevitably, the iPhone has had an impact on iPod sales, but Apple still sold 9 million and the company says that it retains its estimated US market share of more than 70%, while gaining share internationally.
“We’re thrilled with the performance and strength of our business, generating almost $5.7 billion in cash flow from operations during the quarter,” said Peter Oppenheimer, Apple’s chief financial officer.
He said that he expects another set of record results for the current quarter.
To put the results in perspective, Microsoft has never reported a $20 billion quarter and, if you define the iPad as a computer and add its sales figure to the Mac’s, Apple is now the leading computer manufacturer in the US.
