As expected, Apple (AAPL) reported record second quarter earnings Wednesday, blowing past its own guidance and Wall Street's expectations in everything but iPad sales.
"With quarterly revenue growth of 83 percent and profit growth of 95 percent, we're firing on all cylinders," said Steve Jobs in a prepared statement that said nothing about those iPad numbers. "We will continue to innovate on all fronts throughout the remainder of the year."
Wall Street had been expecting iPad sales on the order of 6.3 million units, considerably more than the 4.69 million Apple reported. But given the long lines and shipping delays, the shortfall was clearly due to supply issues, not demand.
"We sold every iPad 2 we could make," said CFO Peter Oppenheimer in the conference call with analysts. COO Tim Cook described the situation as "the mother of all backlogs."
Apple shares, which closed up $4.55, rose nearly $14 more in after-hours trading.
Below the fold: The numbers and details from the earnings call.
• Sales: $24.67 billion, up 82.8% year over year
• Profits: $5.99 billion, up 95%
• EPS: $6.4, up 92%
• iPhone: 18.65 million units, up 113% (!)
• U.S. iPhone sales were up 155%, thanks in part to Verizon; Greater China up 250%
• iPad: 4.69 million units, compared with 7.33 million in Q1.
• iPad sell-through was 5.1 million units, given the decline in inventory
• Mac: 3.76 million units, up 28%. Asia-Pacific Mac sales up 76%.
• iPod: 9.02 million units, down 17%. More than 50% iPod touch
• iTunes store: Sales of $1.4 billion
• Gross margin: 41.4%, compared with guidance of 38.5%
• Apple stores: 71.1 million visitors, up 50%
• Store sales: $3.19 billion, up 90%
• Cash and marketable securities: $65.8 billion, up from 59.7 in Q1
• Revenue guidance for Q3: $23 billion
• EPS guidance for Q3: $5.03
• Gross margin guidance for Q3: 38%
The first question from analysts addressed the impact of the Japanese earthquakes on the company's supply chain. According to COO Tim Cook, Apple experienced no impact in Q2 and anticipated no "material" impact for Q3, although he said there are risks beyond June. "I would worry if something happened and things took a turn for the worse."
Cook was particularly enthusiastic about the growth in Apple's computer sales, especially in the face of the 3% decline in the broader PC market reported last week by IDC. This is the 20th quarter in a row that the Mac has outperformed its competitors. "We seem to be the only guys building innovative products in that space," Cook said.
He also took a swipe at the Android phones, comparing Apple's "integrated" approach unfavorably to Google's "fragmented" approach. Users appreciate that Apple takes full responsibility for the iPhone experience, according to Cook. The fragmented approach, he said, turns customers into systems integrators. "And I know very few customers who want to be a systems integrator."
Asked when Steve Jobs would return, Cook spoke carefully. "We do see him on a regular basis," he said, and Jobs continues to be involved in strategic decisions. "I know that he wants to be back as soon as he can."
With regards the intellectual property lawsuit Apple filed against Samsung earlier this week, Cook said that Samsung remains a valuable supplier, but that Apple felt its mobile division had "crossed the line." After failing to resolve the issues, Apple decided to leave them to the courts.
Macworld has posted an edited transcript of the conference call here. Seeking Alpha's should be available later this evening. You can hear Apple's audio webcast here for the next two weeks.
