Apple Posts Record Quarter, But Misses Estimates [Update]

Big Piles of MomeyApple Inc. posted a rare miss for the September quarter on Tuesday, announcing record revenue of US$28.27 billion and record earnings of $7.05 per share (EPS) (total profit of $6.62 billion). Despite the new records, the company missed consensus Wall Street estimates of revenue of $29.2 billion and EPS $7.20, leading to a sharp sell-off in after hours trading.

Those results compare to revenue of $20.34 billion in the September quarter of 2010, Apple’s 4th fiscal quarter, and EPS of $4.64. The company reported gross margins of 40.3%, up from 36.9% in the year-ago quarter.

That works out to 17.07 million iPhones in the quarter, even though the company was expected to update the iPhone line in October. Apple also sold 11.12 million iPads, 6.62 million iPods, and a staggering 4.89 million Macs.

“We are extremely pleased with our record September quarter revenue and earnings and with cash generation of $5.4 billion during the quarter,” Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer said in a statement. “Looking ahead to the first fiscal quarter of 2012, which will span 14 weeks rather than 13, we expect revenue of about $37 billion and we expect diluted earnings per share of about $9.30.”

Shares in AAPL plummeted in after hours trading, where it is currently selling at $395.98, down $26.26 (-6.22%). The stock has moved slightly higher to $422.24, up $2.25 (+0.54%), on strong volume of 29 million shares trading hands during the regular session.

The Mac Observer will be offering live coverage of Apple’s quarterly conference call with analysts and detailed coverage of the major news to come out of the call.

[Update: This story was updated with additional details. - Editor]

*In the interest of full disclosure, the author holds a tiny, almost insignificant share in AAPL stock that was not an influence in the creation of this article.