Apple Sells Record Number of iPhones, Shares Fall During its fiscal fourth quarter, the tech giant sold almost 34 million iPhones -- roughly in line with analyst expectations.

By Jason Fell

For Apple, today is part good news, part bad news. While the tech giant reported better-than-expected earnings on an increase in revenues, and record sales of iPhones during its fiscal fourth quarter, investors apparently aren't all impressed.

For the three-month period ended September 28, Apple reported $37.5 billion in revenue, topping the $36.8 billion analysts had expected and marking a 4 percent increase from the same period last year.

From those revenues, Apple earned a net profit of $7.5 billion, or $8.26 a share, down from $8.2 billion, or $8.67 a share, a year ago. Analysts had expected earnings of $7.93 a share.

Related: Apple Upgrades the iPhone With New 5S and 5C Models

The quarter also set a record for iPhone sales, which Apple says reached 33.8 million. That's compared to 26.9 million in the year-ago period. In September, Apple released its updated iPhone 5S and 5C models.

Sales of the iPad remained flat during the quarter at about 14 million sold, the company said.

For the 12-month period, Apple reported net sales of $170.9 billion, up from $156.5 billion in fiscal 2012. Profits were down for the year as well as the quarter, with Apple racking in $37 billion in net income compared to $41.7 billion last year.

Despite "a strong finish to an amazing year," as Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook said in a release, investors didn't seem as pleased with the results. Apple stock was down about 3 percent in after hours trading.

Related: As Tablet Wars Heat Up, Apple's New iPads Get Serious Upgrades

Jason Fell

Entrepreneur Staff

VP, Native Content

Jason Fell is the VP of Native Content, managing the Entrepreneur Partner Studio, which creates dynamic and compelling content for our partners. He previously served as Entrepreneur.com's managing editor and as the technology editor prior to that.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Buying / Investing in Business

From a $120M Acquisition to a $1.3T Market

Co-ownership is creating big opportunities for entrepreneurs.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Business News

AI Could Cause 99% of All Workers to Be Unemployed in the Next Five Years, Says Computer Science Professor

Professor Roman Yampolskiy predicted that artificial general intelligence would be developed and used by 2030, leading to mass automation.

Buying / Investing in Business

Big Investors Are Betting on This 'Unlisted' Stock

You can join them as an early-stage investor as this company disrupts a $1.3T market.

Leadership

Lead From the Top: 5 Core Responsibilities of a CEO

Knowing exactly what the chief executive's role entails is critical for steering a company to success.