Apple (AAPL) Soars On Strong Q1 Results

Shares of Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) are 9% higher in after-hours action after reporting much better-than-expected Q1 results and providing solid guidance.

Apple reported Q1 EPS of $1.78, above the Street estimate of $1.39. Revenue for the quarter was $10.1 billion, versus the consensus of $9.75 billion.

Apple sees Q2 EPS of $0.90-$1.00, versus the consensus of $1.13, and revenue of $7.6-$8 billion, versus the consensus of $8.2 billion. Apple is normally pretty conservative on guidance, but this is a little less conservative than normal.

Apple sold 2,524,000 Macintosh computers during the quarter, up 9% from the year-ago quarter. The Company sold a record 22,727,000 iPods during the quarter, up 3%. Quarterly iPhone units sold were 4,363,000, up 88%.

For a change, the earnings news in overshadowing news about CEO Steve Jobs, who took a leave of absence recently due to "more complex" health issues. We will see how long this lasts.