SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP)--Apple Computer Inc. saw sales jump 75 percent in its latest quarter _ and net income more than quadruple _ as sizzling sales of iPod music players led the company to what CEO Steve Jobs called its best quarterly performance.

But Apple executives stunned some analysts by offering a more pessimistic view of how the company will fare in the next quarter.

"It''s been a long time since they guided down," said Shaw Wu, an analyst with American Technology Research. "It''s kind of bizarre considering the September quarter is usually a strong back-to-school quarter for Apple."

For the three months ended June 25, Apple''s profit rose to $320 million, or 37 cents per share, up from the $61 million and 8 cents per share the company reported in the year-ago quarter.

Sales surged 75 percent to $3.52 billion from $2.01 billion last year.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expected the Cupertino-based company to report earnings of 31 cents per share on revenue of $3.34 billion.

The company shipped 1.2 million Macintosh computers and 6.2 million iPods, the overwhelming leader among digital music players, during the quarter. The numbers represents a 35 percent increase in Mac sales and more than a six-fold jump for iPods from the third quarter in 2004.

For the fourth quarter, Apple predicted earnings of 32 cents per share on revenue of $3.52 billion. Analysts were looking for profit of 33 cents per share on sales of $3.6 billion.

Apple, which has now sold more than 20 million iPods, is seeing the music player create a "halo effect" around its other products, analysts said. The iPod craze is leading consumers to Macintosh computers.

But many wonder how long the iPod can fuel Apple''s hot streak.

Analysts quizzed Apple executives about reports that the company was overstocked with some iPod models. Company executives declined to discuss particulars but denied that demand for iPods had cooled.

"On inventory levels for both Mac and iPod ended in targeted ranges," Apple''s chief financial officer, Peter Oppenheimer, said on a call with reporters. "We are very comfortable with the inventory levels."

Executives told analysts not to read too much into the forecast, saying they were being "prudent" considering the uncertainty regarding the company''s transition to microprocessor chips made by Intel Corp.

Oppenheimer said Apple is still unsure how consumers will react to the news last month that the company is dropping IBM chips in favor of Intel''s.

The switch, which is to planned for next year, spooked some Mac fans. Many said they would wait to upgrade computers until Intel-based Macs were rolled out, fearing Apple would stop writing software for Mac computers running on IBM chips. Apple has said it will provide software for IBM-based Macs well into the future.

The company said international sales accounted for 39 percent of the quarter''s revenue.

"We are delighted to report Apple''s best quarter ever in both revenue and earnings" Jobs said in a statement. "The launch of Mac OS X Tiger has been a tremendous success, and we have more amazing new products in the pipeline."

Apple shares rose 11 cents to close at $38.35 Wednesday on the Nasdaq Stock Market, then added $1.36, or 3.6 percent in the late session. Apple released the income report after the close of regular trading.