Apple is back. Shares hit an all-time high Tuesday despite a chorus of recent concerns from Wall Street analysts about demand for the new artificial intelligence-enabled iPhone 16. The news A major catalyst for Tuesday’s move: Data that signaled strong demand for Apple’s biggest money maker, the iPhone. In the third quarter, iPhone shipments rose 3.5% year over year to 56 million, according to a report Monday from market research firm International Data Corporation. That’s well above the Wall Street consensus of 50 million shipments, implying potentially between $2 billion to $4 billion of revenue upside in the quarter, Morgan Stanley said in a note to clients Tuesday. Apple’s share of the global smartphone market in the quarter held roughly steady from the year-ago period at 17.7%, according to IDC. Apple is second to only electronics giant Samsung , which had 18.3% share. “In Q3 2024, older iPhone models, specifically the iPhone 15, performed exceptionally well due to the heavy promotions and increased marketing activities around Apple Intelligence,” Nabila Popal, research director for Worldwide Client Devices at IDC, said in a release. Apple Intelligence is the company’s new suite of generative artificial intelligence tools due out later this month. “Despite the staggered rollout of Apple Intelligence in markets outside the U.S., Apple will continue to grow in the upcoming holiday season as it expects many customers to upgrade from the iPhone 13, iPhone 12 and prior models to a new AI-enabled smartphone, future-proofing their purchases for the long term,” Popal continued. The IDC report helped propel shares of Apple to an all-time intraday high of $237.49 apiece Tuesday, narrowly eclipsing their previous peak reached in July. While the stock is off its highs of the session, it remains up around 2% and on track for its loftiest close on record. Its current record close of $234.82 was set on July 16. Apple has rebounded nicely from Wall Street’s early August swoon , though the stock still entered Tuesday slightly underperforming the S & P 500 since the index’s recent bottom on Aug. 5. Also Tuesday, Apple announced its first update to the iPad mini in three years . Available for preorder now, the tablet has a processor capable of supporting Apple Intelligence. Big picture The IDC data comes as many on Wall Street express skepticism around sales for the new iPhone 16 lineup. A number of analysts, including from JPMorgan, Barclays and Bank of America, all previously said lower shipping times for the latest iPhone models may indicate softer demand for the AI-capable devices. To be sure, not all chatter around the tech giant is negative. Evercore ISI listed Apple as a tactical outperform on Sunday ahead of its earnings report in late October. Analysts at the firm said Apple shares can rally if the company merely meets investors’ rather low expectations for the quarter. Apple’s advance Tuesday — paired with a pullback in fellow Club holding Nvidia amid broader weakness in chip stocks — means the company should retain the crown of most valuable publicly traded U.S. company for at least another day. Nvidia closed Monday at a record high, putting its market cap at $3.4 trillion . Apple’s stood at $3.55 trillion. Bottom line Investors are right to be focusing on the upbeat IDC data, which is “very contrary to what most of Wall Street is thinking,” Jim Cramer said Tuesday. Although Apple is trading at record levels Tuesday, more upside should be ahead for the stock as an AI-driven iPhone upgrade cycle plays out over time, boosting sales. Jim on Tuesday maintained his long-held “own it, don’t trade it” thesis on Apple stock. (Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust is long AAPL, NVDA. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust’s portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED.
Apple CEO Tim Cook inspects the new iPhone 16 during an Apple special event at Apple headquarters on September 09, 2024 in Cupertino, California.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
Apple is back.
Shares hit an all-time high Tuesday despite a chorus of recent concerns from Wall Street analysts about demand for the new artificial intelligence-enabled iPhone 16.