Apple packed the week with hardware news. At a Tuesday home-focused event, it debuted a screen dubbed HomeView and an updated Apple TV 4K streaming box. The company plans to ship a touchscreen MacBook plus a new iPad mini later this month.
Pre-orders for the foldable iPhone Duo begin Friday. The handset represents the biggest redesign ever for Apple's most profitable device, and its price tag is steep.
Apple shares hit a record in late July on buzz about its smart-home push and doubts about the heavy AI spending it has mostly sidestepped. Since then, the stock has been basically flat. On Monday, it rose 1.7%, set an intraday record, and topped $5 trillion in market value.
Year to date, the shares have climbed 27%, leading the Magnificent Seven. At 36 times next year's projected earnings - the richest multiple since 2007 - the stock stands well above the 10-year average of 24, putting Apple among the 50 priciest S&P 500 constituents while the index as a whole sits at 19 times forward earnings.
Some of that premium ties to Apple's spot in the AI trade: it is seen as a beneficiary of the technology's rollout without the same spending risk. Expectations are also high for new Chief Executive Officer John Ternus to spur growth by upgrading and expanding the device lineup.
Hardware launches are judged on whether they move the revenue line. Market Briefs covers consumer tech free every weekday.
There are real risks. A Bloomberg Intelligence report last week said Apple reduced component orders for certain iPhone models after demand fell short of expectations. Consumers are also dealing with persistent inflation, and Apple has raised prices as parts like memory chips get more expensive.
Peter Andersen, overseeing $5.5 billion as chief investment officer at Andersen Capital Management, said, "For a company of this size, you need super-hit products to move the needle on growth." "I'm just not sure anything we're getting is exciting enough to lead to an inflection." Andersen - who avoids holding the shares because, in his view, innovation has lagged - added, "Apple executes its products flawlessly, but it's hard to expect these will really take off," pointing to entrenched home-market competitors and pressured consumers.
Lu Zhang - the founder and managing partner at Fusion Fund and a shareholder in her personal account - said, "Apple's product path seems promising, but I don't think the first generation of new products will mean much for overall revenue." "It remains to be seen whether we will see the kind of new use cases (for the foldable Duo) that will contribute to a broad upgrade cycle." She added, "All the AI companies are competing with each other, but whenever they launch a new model they need Apple as a key distribution channel, and that's an area where it essentially has no competitor," and, "Even if Duo adoption isn't high right out of the gate, so long as Apple continues to execute on its hardware, it will warrant a premiere multiple."
Wall Street hasn't shifted much. Over the past three months, estimates for Apple's fiscal 2027 net income slipped 0.6%, while revenue expectations edged up 0.7%. Apple's growth rate is also trailing Big Tech peers.
The company's fiscal year ended Sept. 30, and projections indicate a 15% rise in revenue to be revealed with earnings in a few weeks, followed by slower growth expected at 10% for fiscal 2027 and 7.8% for fiscal 2028. More broadly, tech sales are expected to decelerate off higher levels, with S&P 500 information technology sector revenue projected to rise 37% in 2026 and 29% in 2027, per Bloomberg Intelligence.
You're getting a fresh batch of hardware, lofty expectations, and a valuation near peak levels, all at once. The real tell will be whether demand for the Duo and the new home gear shows up in Apple's next few updates, especially against forecasts calling for slower growth beyond this year. If adoption is solid and the AI ecosystem keeps running through Apple devices, that premium multiple will have something sturdier under it.
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