IPhones dial in larger Apple profit in fourth quarter

But iPad shipments continue to decline

Apple's iPad shipments declined, but strong iPhone 6 and 6 Plus sales buoyed the company's profit in its fourth quarter for fiscal 2014.

Apple's net profit was $C8.5 billion during the quarter, up from $US7.5 billion in the same quarter one year ago, the company said on Monday.

Revenue was $US42.1 billion for the quarter ending on September 27, growing from $US37.5 billion in the same quarter last year. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected revenue of $US39.88 billion for the quarter.

IPhone shipments were 39.27 million units in the fourth quarter, increasing from 33.8 million units in same quarter last year. IPad shipments were 12.3 million, falling from 14.08 million units a year ago. Mac shipments totaled 5.5 million units, compared to 4.58 million units during the year-ago quarter.

Apple sold more than 10 million iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus smartphones in the first three days they shipped, from September 19.

In tablets, Apple is losing ground to Android device makers Samsung, Lenovo and Asus. The iPad Air 2 and Mini 3 tablets will ship later this week, though the devices are considered <a href="http://www.macworld.com/article/2834920/hands-on-with-ipad-air-2-and-ipad-mini-3-small-changes-to-the-worlds-top-tablets.html">minor upgrades</a>] from predecessors introduced last year.

Apple is dipping its feet in wearables with the Apple Watch, which was introduced during the quarter and will ship early next year.

The Mac business is also seeing a revival of sorts. Apple last week started shipping the 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display, which can show images at a 5120 x 2880 pixel resolution, and also slashed the starting price of Mac Mini to $US499, a $US100 reduction.

Apple issued of dividend of $0.47 per share. The company is projecting revenue of between $US63.5 billion and $US66.5 billion for the first fiscal quarter of 2015.

Agam Shah covers PCs, tablets, servers, chips and semiconductors for IDG News Service. Follow Agam on Twitter at @agamsh. Agam's e-mail address is agam_shah@idg.com

Join the newsletter!

Or

Sign up to gain exclusive access to email subscriptions, event invitations, competitions, giveaways, and much more.

Membership is free, and your security and privacy remain protected. View our privacy policy before signing up.

Error: Please check your email address.

Tags business issuesApplefinancial results

More about AppleIDGLenovoNewsSamsungThomsonThomson Reuters

Show Comments
[]