At Steve Jobs' Apple, it's the revenue!!

Apple Inc.'s blowout results Monday afternoon were almost too good to believe.

When the California computer company started making happy talk about the holiday season, the recession seemed very far away indeed.

What separates Apple from other companies beating their numbers is a simple matter of which numbers are being beat. In the early days of an economic recovery, revenue is king.

Apple's sales shot up 24 percent to almost $10 billion in the quarter. That translates into 7.4 million iPhones and 3.1 million Macintosh computers out the door. Who is buying this stuff?

Apparently, the American consumer is saving on Band-aids and splurging on electronic toys. Johnson & Johnson beat a number too last week, reporting higher-than-expected profits. But revenues were a disappointment, so the stock flagged.

"The most important corporate data for the upcoming earnings season will be improvement in top-line sales, while profit margins and management commentary on the future outlook play second fiddle," explains Doug Nardi at Legg Mason Investment Counsel in Chicago.