Apple Share Hits $700 For First Time
Apple’s stock reached $700 for the first time Tuesday morning, a mere 24 hours after announcing that iPhone 5 preorders topped 2 million within the first day.
The highest stock trade peaked at $701.44. Monday’s close came within 20 cents of $700 and rose a quarter of a percent the following morning.
Apple’s stock price boosted the company’s market value to $656 billion.
“What’s most impressive is that it doesn’t seem to be a fluke. It seems to be an accurate reflection of their value,” said Jared Fleitman, Apple stockholder.
Apple began preorders for the iPhone 5 on Friday at 3 a.m. EDT. Within the first 24 hours, the orders more than doubled what Apple had for the iPhone 4S when it was released last October.
Apple said on Monday that most iPhone 5 preorders will be delivered Friday, but the high demand for the new device in the U.S. and eight other countries means some phones will be delivered in October.
Fleitman is convinced that annual releases of Apple’s lastest iPhone models hinder the company’s innovation process.
“They counteract the experience of innovation. Every new phone they’re putting out only has incremental improvements,” said Fleitman. “They’re definitely capable of putting out more impressive, more groundbreaking phones.”
The iPhone 5 has the first screen revision—from 3.5 inches to 4 inches, measured diagonally—since the first model was released in 2007. This change enables another row of icons and a better visual for widescreen movies. The iPhone 5 is also lighter in weight and thinner than its predecessors.
Since the death of Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs last October, the company’s share has risen 87 percent.
"As a holder of Apple stock, I celebrate that it's going up. But I'm also nervous because the bigger they are, the harder they fall," said Fleitman. "I'm dreading the day that it drops."
RELATED:
