Apple third-quarter profit beats forecast on solid iPhone sales

Apple posted third-quarter net income that beat forecast on Monday, driven hugely by Mac and iPhone sales including the newly launched iPhone 6 smartphones.

Revenue was at $42.12 billion, exceeding market forecasts of around $40 billion, and above Apple’s guidance range. Net profit came at $8.5 billion, or $1.42 per share, up from $7.5 billion a year ago. Gross margins also increased.

Apple reported total iPhone sales at 39.27 million units, a new quarterly record, and up from 37.79 a year ago. Sales of Apple’s Mac also struck a new all-time high at 5.5 million units in the third quarter, compared with a little over a million in the same period in 2013.

iPhone sales were boosted by nearly two weeks of iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus sales after the biggest iPhone launch ever.

Growth in the Mac sales has remarkably contributed to the apples` positive earnings, considering the weakening state of the global PC market in the past few years. However, iPad sales disappointed, with only 12.3 million units sold, compared with 13.1 in 2013.

The company also introduced its digital payment system, Apple Pay, at a number of retailers in the U.S., including Whole Foods and Walgreens pharmacy chain.

Analysts believe that Apple Pay could be one of the biggest revenue forces in coming years, alongside the ever-wanted iPhones.

Fourth-quarter sales are expected to go even higher as the iPhones will be released in new markets, together with the upcoming key holiday quarter.

Shares in Apple jumped 2% in premarket trading. The company also declared a cash dividend of $0.47 a share of its common stocks.