Apple hits record close on foldable iPhone demand

Apple ↘ 0.14% stock closed at an all-time high on Wednesday, October 21, finishing at $343.99, up $4.49 on the day. The gain gave the iPhone maker a market value of about $5.02 trillion, according to MacDailyNews. The new closing high beat the previous one set a week earlier. It also keeps Apple second among the world's most valuable companies, behind Nvidia ↘ 0.59% at about $5.36 trillion and ahead of Alphabet ↘ 1.08% and Microsoft ↗ 0.66%.macdailynews.com

The 1.3% rise made up for a drop on Tuesday, and trading volume was about 27% below average, MarketBeat reported.investopedia.com

Foldable demand lifts shares

Investors focused on early demand for the iPhone Duo, Apple's first foldable phone, which sells for $1,999. On Wednesday, Apple said stores will have only limited numbers of the phone for walk-in buyers when it goes on sale Friday, October 23. Buyers are also limited to two devices each, CNBC Comcast Corporation ↘ 0.66% reported, and wait times are now longer than three months. Online preorders sold out within minutes, and some delivery dates moved into January 2027. Apple has also planned a "Pro and Tell" event for October 28, where analysts expect new Macs.cnbc.com+1

Some analysts remain cautious. On Tuesday, Loop Capital cut Apple to Hold from Buy and lowered its price target to $330 from $370, pointing to concerns about iPhone shipments and rising memory costs. UBS ↘ 1.07% kept its Neutral rating and noted that Apple's valuation was at a five-year high, Stocktwits reported. Morgan Stanley ↘ 2.44% described a "slightly challenging near-term setup" heading into earnings but kept its Overweight rating.stocktwits.com+1

A week after the first $5 trillion close

On October 14, Apple closed above $5 trillion for the first time, finishing at $342.96. That made it only the second company after Nvidia to close above that level. The Wall Street Journal News Corp ↘ 0.53% reported that Apple's value had briefly topped $5 trillion during trading six times before, without holding there at the close. The first of those times was in July, Reuters Thomson Reuters Corporation ↘ 0.07% reported.reuters.com+2

The milestones come early in John Ternus's time as chief executive. He took over from Tim Cook on September 1. Apple will report fiscal fourth-quarter results after the market closes on November 2. Analysts expect earnings of $1.98 per share on revenue of $113.07 billion, according to Benzinga. That quarter ended September 26, so it won't include any iPhone Duo sales. Investors will have to wait for the report after that to see whether demand for the foldable can support Apple's record valuation.finance.yahoo.com+1