SAN FRANCISCO (Bloomberg) - Apple Inc. reported fourth-quarter sales and profit that beat analysts' estimates, citing demand for iPhones and iPad tablet computers for students heading back to school.

Net income rose to $4.31 billion, or $4.64 a share, compared with $2.53 billion, or $2.77, a year earlier, Apple said yesterday in a statement. Sales in the period that ended in September rose to $20.3 billion. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg had estimated sales of $18.9 billion and profit of $4.10 a share.

Apple, now the third-largest company by market value, is benefiting from rising demand for its smartphones and computers even as rivals lament lacklustre household computer purchases. Intel Corp. last week cited tepid buying among consumers in the US and Europe. The iPad is gaining popularity among businesses as well as gadget enthusiasts, said Barry Jaruzelski, a partner at consulting firm Booz & Co.

"The only surprise would be if it was anything but good news," Mr. Jaruzelski said. "The iPad was a question to some folks whether it would go beyond the latest must-have consumer device. It has."

Revenue this quarter will be about $23 billion, Apple chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer said in the statement. Profit will be about $4.80 a share in the period, which includes the yearend holiday shopping season.

Apple, based in Cupertino, California, climbed $3.26 to $318, a record, at 4 p.m. in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The shares, up 51 percent this year, surpassed $300 for the first time last week.

Analysts had predicted profit of $5.03 a share on sales of $22.3 billion for the current quarter. Apple typically gives forecasts that fall short of estimates.

Yesterday's results include the first full quarter of sales for the fourth version of the iPhone, released in June, and the second time Apple has reported the performance of the iPad, now available in 26 countries. Apple sold 14.1 million iPhones. It sold 4.19 million iPads and 3.89 million Macintosh computers.

Gene Munster, an analyst at Piper Jaffray Cos. in Minneapolis, projected Apple would sell 4.5 million iPads and 11 million iPhones during the fourth fiscal quarter. Supply shortages likely held back sales of both devices, Mr. Musnter said in a research note last week.