Apple share price continues to rise as valuation storms past $700 billion
Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL), the world’s largest publicly-traded company, is getting even larger. Yesterday, Apple’s stock closed at $122.02 in New York trading, giving the company a record market capitalisation of $710.7 billion. This was the first time a US company had achieved such a feat. At this level, the iPhone maker was more than twice as valuable as its long-time rival Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT). But it did not stop there, as Apple’s shares continued their advance on today. As of 15:29 UTC the stock was exchanging hands at $123.70, valuing the company at $719.3 billion.
According to data compiled by Bloomberg, analysts currently have a 12-month average target price of $132.56. The highest target is $165, issued by First Shanghai Securities Ltd on February 3, the newswire notes. If the share price reaches this level, the company would be worth more than $960 billion.
Apple’s share price has benefitted from a rise in investor confidence, prompted by last year’s release of larger-screen smartphone models. The move has proven to be very successful for Apple, driving iPhone sales to record levels in the final three months of 2014. The smartphone sales were also helped by a distribution partnership with China Mobile, which contributed to a 70-percent jump in revenue from China in the period. And as Apple prepares to ship the Apple Watch in the coming months, its first new product since the original iPad tablet, the future is looking bright for the Cupertino-based tech giant.
“Given Apple’s powerful iPhone cycle, a big 4G ramp in China and the upcoming launch of Apple Watch in April, we believe there is still plenty to look forward to at Apple during this transformational cycle,” Brian White, an analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald, wrote in a note to investors, as quoted by Bloomberg.
As of 16:07 GMT, Wednesday, 11 February, Apple Inc. share price is $124.05.
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