Apple stock jumps after strong second quarter fueled by iPhone sales

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Apple Inc. rode to another record quarter, largely on the strength of its workhorse iPhone, the popular smartphone that has helped the company become the most valuable technology firm in the world.

The company sold 18.65 million iPhones in its fiscal second quarter, the largest number it has sold since the device debuted in mid-2007. The reported quarter, ended March 26, was the first in which Apple offered the iPhone through Verizon, opening up the device to tens of millions of new customers. Before January, only AT&T customers were able to buy the iPhone.

‘When the iPhone does well, it does a lot to boost the profitability of the company as a whole,’ said Yair Reiner, an analyst at Oppenheimer & Co. ‘The iPhone is Apple’s most profitable product.’

The results, released after the market closed Wednesday, immediately impressed Wall Street. In after-hours trading, Apple stock rose $8.70, or 2.54%, to $351.11. Apple doubled its profit over the same quarter last year, to $6 billion from a little over $3 billion, and realized a similar increase in revenue, rising to $24.67 billion from $13.50 billion a year ago.

‘With quarterly revenue growth of 83% and profit growth of 95%, we’re firing on all cylinders,” said Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs, now on medical leave, in a statement. “We will continue to innovate on all fronts throughout the remainder of the year.’

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-- David Sarno