Apple Inc. seems to have missed the memo — you know, the one about the recession.

Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple coasted past Wall Street’s expectations for its fiscal third quarter on a wave of laptop and iPhone sales. It did it during a quarter in which total computer shipments fell worldwide. And it did it without sacrificing profit.

Investors sent Apple’s stock up $6.82, or 4.5 percent, to $158.33 in after-hours trading Tuesday. Shares had dipped $1.40 to end regular trading at $151.51.

“Times are tough. Apple continues to post pretty strong numbers,” said Shaw Wu, an analyst for Kaufman Bros. “It’s pretty incredible. It truly is.”

Apple, the closest thing the tech industry has to a luxury brand, said earnings for the three months that ended June 27 jumped 15 percent to $1.23 billion, or $1.35 per share. Apple’s profit was $1.07 billion, or $1.19 per share, in the same period last year.

The company, which recently welcomed CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs back from medical leave, said sales increased 12 percent to $8.34 billion from $7.46 billion in the year-ago quarter.

Apple beat Wall Street’s forecast on both measures. Analysts were expecting Apple to earn $1.17 per share — less than last year — on $8.20 billion in revenue, according to a Thomson Reuters survey.

“In a better economy I think we would have sold even more,” Apple Chief Financial Officer Peter Oppenheimer said in an interview.