AAPL Apple Inc

By Tripp Mickle 

Apple Inc. extended its year-long rebound in the latest quarter thanks to rising iPhone demand, and the tech giant projected record revenue in the current quarter driven by sales of its highest-priced iPhone model ever.

Shipments of the company's flagship product rose 2.6% from a year earlier to 46.7 million units. Demand for the iPhone, which accounts for about two-thirds of total sales, along with an upturn in sales of Mac computers and iPad tablets helped Apple deliver its fourth consecutive quarterly increase in revenue and third quarterly increase in profit. Sales in China, a critical market for Apple, rose for the first time since early 2016.

Consistent revenue gains, combined with anticipation for a jump in iPhone sales in 2018, have helped send Apple's stock up about 50% over the past year and pushed its market value to more than $860 billion, following a steep decline in 2016 because of weak China revenue and iPhone 6s sales.

Still, questions remain about Apple's future. The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, which started shipping to customers Sept. 22, helped boost revenue in the September quarter but had the weakest initial sales of any new iPhone in years, according to estimates by market research firms. The iPhone X, which ships Friday, has been dogged by production challenges that delayed manufacturing at least one month and hounded by questions its $999 price tag.

Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook said the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus have outsold other models since shipping in September but added that he has never expected sales to exceed initial sales of last year's iPhone 7 and 7 Plus because it is releasing three phones this year. He said that Apple had earlier planned to release the iPhone X even later than Nov. 2, but decided to "be very bold and do it sooner." He declined to offer specifics.

"The ramp, especially considering how advanced the product is, is going well," Mr. Cook said in an interview. "Obviously, if it wasn't, we wouldn't be able to guide" for record revenue for the current quarter.

Apple expects revenue of $84 billion to $87 billion in the current quarter, far above the company's previous record of $78.35 billion in the final three months of 2016.

For its fiscal fourth quarter ending Sept. 30, Apple's revenue rose 12% to $52.58 billion and profit jumped 19% to $10.71 billion, or $2.07 a share, from $9.01 billion, or $1.67 a share, in the same period a year earlier. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected earnings of $1.87 a share.

Write to Tripp Mickle at Tripp.Mickle@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 02, 2017 16:47 ET (20:47 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.