iPhone fix a small cost for Apple

Article Excerpt

APPLE INC. $261 (Nasdaq symbol AAPL; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 913.6 million; Market cap: $238.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 4.2; No dividends paid; WSSF Rating: Average) will give users of its new iPhone 4 smartphone a free rubber bumper that fits over the device. This bumper seems to solve the reception problems that some users have reported. The company estimates that this solution will cost it $175 million. That’s small compared to the $3.25 billion, or $3.51 a share, Apple earned in the three months ended June 26, 2010. That’s up 78.0% from $1.8 billion, or $2.01 a share, a year earlier. Sales rose 61.3%, to $15.7 billion from $9.7 billion. Despite the reception problems, demand for the new iPhone remains strong. Apple is a buy. buy…