Text size
Apple’s market capitalization has grown more and more in 2023 and may continue.
Eric Thayer/Getty Images
Apple
hit a market capitalization of $3 trillion in premarket trading in the United States on Friday, with the tech giant poised to firm up a record valuation after a remarkable rally to start the year. Wall Street still says the stock is a screaming buy, even at these levels.
Shares in
Apple
(ticker: AAPL) are up 46% year-to-date, beating the performance of the
Dow Jones Industrial Average,
S&P 500,
and very technological
Nasdaq
— up 3%, 15% and 30%, respectively.
Apple briefly topped $3 trillion in transactions in early 2022, but never successfully closed above that level. The number to watch: $190,734. Apple shares were up 0.8% in premarket Friday trading at $191.10.
“Apple is poised to smash the exclusive $3 trillion market capitalization today in what will be considered a historic day for the tech sector,” Wedbush analyst Dan Ives wrote in a statement. Friday note. “Apple bears and skeptics continue to scratch their heads as many have called Apple’s ‘broken growth story’ this year amid a more challenging backdrop in which we firmly believe is exactly the the opposite happened.”
And the stock is still good for gains, according to Wall Street, with stocks earning an average buy rating among nearly 40 analysts polled by FactSet.
Citi analysts joined the chorus of bulls on Thursday, initiating coverage of Apple with a buy rating and target price of $240, implying 27% gains from Thursday’s closing price of 189. $.59.
“As Apple navigates the macroeconomic slowdown and inflationary pressure on consumer spending by steadily gaining market share from Android phones, we see approximately 30% additional upside potential from current levels,” the authors wrote. analysts in a note.
“We believe Street is underestimating the continued gross margin expansion,” they added, noting that a shift in iPhone sales to the premium segment, further market share gains in China and in India, the pursuit of self-designed chips and a higher-margin service sales mix were all tailwinds.
Write to Jack Denton at jack.denton@barrons.com