Apple profit tops targets

The San Jose Mercury News reports Apple's quarterly profits rose, "bolstered by solid sales of its iPod music player in the slow post-holiday season." The company "sold 8.5 million iPods in its fiscal second quarter, a 60 percent leap from the same period a year ago but down from the 14 million the previous quarter. It also shipped more than 1 million Macintosh computers, compared with 1.25 million in the first quarter."

With plans to build a second 50-acre campus in Cupertino, California, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster said, "They are obviously building to be a bigger company than their financial guidance is letting on. The reality is, you've got to bet on Apple's side. The brand is so strong, and they are doing it right."

Regarding the post-holiday slowdown, Munster said, "There is a pause effect. There is a delay in manufacturing. In some ways, the March quarter and the June quarter are a victim of some of the success they have had."

According to NPD Group, "last month, Apple gained a bit more share in the U.S. digital music player market, climbing from 71 percent in December to nearly 78 percent in March."

Stephen Baker at NPD Group said, "The one thing that has impressed me more than anything else about how they have managed the iPod is how precise they have been in placing their products in a price-value range. At some point, absolute price is an issue."