Apple Posts Q1 Sales Gains

By Joseph Palenchar -- TWICE, 1/26/2009

CUPERTINO, CALIF. — Unit sales of Apple's iPods, iPhones and Macintosh computers grew in the fiscal first quarter, ended Dec. 31, pushing net sales up 5.8 percent to $10.2 billion and net income up 1.5 percent to $1.61 billion. Operating income was flat at $2.13 billion.

Worldwide sales of iPods grew 3 percent to 22.73 million units in the quarter, compared with the year-ago quarter, while iPhone sales rose 88 percent to 4.36 million, and Macintosh computer sales rose 9 percent to 2.52 million.

Although iPod unit sales were up from the year-ago quarter, iPod dollar sales were down 16 percent, Apple said. Unit iPhone sales were down 37 percent from 6.9 million in the previous quarter ending September.

During the previous quarter, iPod sales were up 8 percent in units to 11.05 million but up only 3 percent in dollars. iPhone sales during that quarter were up 516 percent to 6.89 million from the year-ago 1.12 million. Also in the quarter ending September, revenues were up 35 percent to $7.9 billion, with net income rising 25.7 percent.

For the fiscal year ending last September, revenues rose 35.3 percent to $32.48 billion with net income rising 38.3 percent to $4.83 billion.

The first-quarter results mark the first time that Apple's quarterly revenue exceeded $10 billion, the company said. Sales outside the U.S. accounted for 46 percent of the company's revenue in the quarter.