Apple Inc (AAPL) is now without Steve Jobs, of course, but moving forward just the same. If recent boardroom appointments are anything to go by, its could be more of the same for the next few years for AAPL shareholders, which won’t be a bad thing: shareholders have seen the value of their shares increase four fold in the last five years.

Long time director Arthur Levinson has been appointed as Chairman, having been a co-lead director since 2005, and Bob Iger (CEO of Walt Disney) has been announced as a member of the audit committee. These appointments are unlikely to change AAPL’s strategic direction, so there should be no nasty surprises for shareholders to contemplate.

On 18October, the company released results that disappointed the market, and caused the shares to fall. JP Morgan (JPM) said at the time that it believed the fall could present an opportunity for investors to buy shares. It said that the rare numbers miss was explainable by the shortfall in iPhone sales (which constitute approximately 40% of AAPL’s annual sales) as consumers put off purchases until the next generation iPhone was launched. It also cited further penetration of China as a driver of growth in the future.

With China now accounting for 12% of AAPL’s business revenue, the company has recently made it even easier for Chinese customers to purchase its product by accepting the Yuan as a payment currency.

At the beginning of October, AAPL launched its iPhone 4S, which topped 4 million unit sales in the first weekend. To continue reading, click here