Apple today announced financial results for its fiscal fourth quarter which ended on December 26, 2009. Apple posted revenue of $15.68 billion and a net quarterly profit of $3.38 billion, or $3.67 per diluted share. These results compare to revenue of $11.88 billion and net quarterly profit of $2.26 billion, or $2.50 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Gross margin rose to 40.9 percent from 37.9 percent in the year-ago quarter.
During the quarter Apple also sold 3.36 million Macs representing a 33 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter. Apple also sold 8.7 million iPhones in the quarter, representing 100 percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter as well as 21 million iPods during the quarter, representing an eight percent unit decline from the year-ago quarter.
"We are very pleased to have generated $5.8 billion in cash during the quarter,” said Peter Oppenheimer, Apple’s CFO. "Looking ahead to the second fiscal quarter of 2010, we expect revenue in the range of about $11.0 billion to $11.4 billion and we expect diluted earnings per share in the range of about $2.06 to $2.18."
Apple has also adopted the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s amended accounting standards related to certain revenue recognition. Adoption of the new accounting standards significantly changes how Apple accounts for certain items, particularly sales of iPhone and Apple TV. Apple was required to adopt the new accounting standards no later than the first quarter of fiscal 2011. Apple elected to adopt the new standards during the first quarter of fiscal 2010, as reflected in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended December 26, 2009, which was filed with the SEC on January 25, 2010. The Company also filed a Form 10-K/A to amend its Form 10-K for the year ended September 26, 2009.
Because Apple began selling both iPhone and Apple TV in fiscal 2007, Apple retrospectively adopted the new accounting principles as if the new accounting principles had been applied in all prior periods. Consequently, the financial results of each quarter from fiscal 2007 through fiscal 2009 have been revised.