APPLE HAS reported better-than-expected revenue, fuelled by blockbuster holiday sales of the iPhone and iPad that may help ease investor concern about chief executive Steve Jobs’s decision to take medical leave.
Apple reported earnings for the fiscal first quarter ended December 25th of $6 billion, or 6.43 cents a share, up 78 per cent from a year ago net profit of $3.4 billion, or $3.67 a share.
Revenue rose 71 per cent to $26.7 billion, much better than Wall Street’s forecast for revenue of $24.4 billion. Apple, which is known for its conservative forecasts, issued an outlook that was above analysts’ targets. It expects earnings for the March quarter of $4.90 a share on revenue of $22 billion.
The company’s shares closed down 2.3 per cent at $340.65 on the Nasdaq and were halted in extended trading.
Mr Jobs (55), is taking a medical leave of absence without specifying a return date or detailing his condition, Apple said on Monday, igniting a flurry of speculation and frenzied market activity.
In the maestro’s absence, it will be up to chief operating officer Tim Cook to decide how much to tell investors about the absent chief executive and what Apple plans to do with a $50 billion-plus pile of cash and investments.
“I’m more concerned this time than the other two times he took a leave,” said Joseph Eshoo, analyst for Apple stock-holder Sit Investment Associates in Minneapolis.
He mainly worried that Mr Jobs did not cite a timeframe for his return. – (Reuters)
