[thechut]

"Apple said its earnings per share were $9.32 on revenue of $35 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson One Analytics predicted earnings per share of $10.36 on revenue of $37.19 billion."

Via http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_21147940/apples-...

It doesn't matter how much money you actually make when you are as big as Apple, it matters what you make compared to what people (analysts) think and expect you to make.

Edit: Put wrong quarter numbers, fixed.

[polycom]

You said "their estimates" which I took to mean Apples own estimates. Isn't it tradition for Apple to beat their own estimates, fail to meet analysts estimates, and having their shares drop for a period of time afterwards? I'm not a trader though so correct me if I'm wrong.

[astrodust]

They're usually pretty good about their own estimates, but they don't manage "expectations" very well. By way of contrast, Microsoft seems to do this much better, leading to fewer surprises.

These analysts have their heads up their asses, though, as that's the only place you could get numbers like this.

[ubernostrum]

It is a tradition. Manipulation of Apple's stock price by people looking to make a quick buck goes back at least a few years now, with even some big names openly admitting to having done unscrupulous things to make it happen.