Apple Closes Above $5 Trillion for the First Time. I Own Shares, and in My Opinion It Is Inflated

As 9to5Mac and MacRumors reported, Apple closed the day above $5 trillion for the first time. The stock ended at $342.96, up 0.5%, for a market value of $5.005 trillion. According to The Wall Street Journal, Apple crossed $5 trillion during trading seven times before, but this was the first time it stayed there until the closing bell.

Only Nvidia did this before, in October 2025, and Nvidia is still number one at around $5.3 trillion. Apple’s stock is now just a little below its record high of $348.15.

In this article: Congratulations, but it does not feel fair · Apple up, tech down: the “safe haven” theory · Ternus or Cook? Talk about gadgets, not markets · Does Apple deserve $5 trillion with these products? · “All it took was a $300 Apple TV” · Inflation? People may be right · “Paying for safety”? There is no safety on the market · Apple or Nvidia at number one? · What I expect on November 2 · Investors first, customers second? · As a shareholder: sell or hold? · FAQ

Congratulations, but it does not feel fair

I own Apple shares myself, so first: congratulations to all shareholders. But at the same time, it does not feel completely fair to me, looking at what Apple has done lately.

I do not believe these new gadgets are such a big success that investors would go into the stock this hard. In my opinion, it is inflated. I do not want to speculate, but I mean it seriously: I do not see the same response from users as in past years. I see more and more negativity. And I think this is connected to a kind of artificial capitalization, not a real one, and maybe the company itself helps it. That is just my opinion.

Apple up, tech down: the “safe haven” theory

The interesting part: Apple rose while most of tech was red. Oracle closed down 8.83%, Meta 3.27%, Nvidia 3.16%, Microsoft 1.8%, Amazon 1.74% and Google 1.68%. One MacRumors reader explained it like this: Apple goes up when the AI trade busts, because it is seen as a safe haven.

I do not buy it. Some say people are running from AI to Apple, and some say AI is a bubble. Please. How can something that people use every day, and that already helps maybe a million companies around the world, be a bubble? It is the smartest product humanity has known so far, even if it may also be a threat to us.

And what miracle did Apple show this year to make people run to it? The iPhone Duo? In my opinion, there is no miracle there. And about the rest of the price increases, I would rather stay quiet. I do not believe that someone who can read investor news just switched to Apple this year. I rather see a decline than a success, even if Apple only needed to sell fewer units at higher margins to show good numbers. We will see.

Ternus or Cook? Talk about gadgets, not markets

John Ternus took over as CEO on September 1, and the stock is up roughly 5% since then. So is it his success, or still Tim Cook’s?

In my opinion, when we talk about Apple’s merits, we have to talk about gadgets, not markets. If we only say the market is wow, and not the gadgets, then this is another company that will slowly go downhill. It will do a lot of PR and advertising, but in the end it focuses more on investors than on the people waiting for news and wow gadgets. To be honest, that is what I see.

Does Apple deserve $5 trillion with these products?

Honestly, no. There is nothing wow, and these products are for occasional use, not for every day. If the Apple TV was such a success, Apple would not have waited four years to upgrade it. And then they come with a remote with Find My for $59 extra. What kind of greed is that?

And HomeView, I will not even talk about it. In my opinion, a disgrace.

But again, I am happy, and I congratulate the investors who bought when Apple fell with the market. They made nice money lately. That is my honest answer.

“All it took was a $300 Apple TV”

The top comment on MacRumors joked: “All it took was a $300 Apple TV!! Incredible.” Another reader added that Apple got there by selling about 100 iPhone Duos.

I think it is not the Apple TV. It is how much they spent on PR, so that everyone talks about them everywhere. From what I see, the excitement around the new product launches is much smaller than it used to be. Maybe we do not know how many iPhone Duo pre-orders there were, and maybe that is the catch. Let us wait for November 2 and the numbers. Maybe we will all be surprised.

Inflation? People may be right

Several readers said the rally is a sign that inflation is getting out of control, or of money printing. I would not call it money printing. That is the market. But inflation has gotten out of control with everything happening in the world lately, so maybe people are right.

“Paying for safety”? There is no safety on the market

Apple trades at about 35 times expected earnings, Nvidia at about 25, and Nvidia grows much faster. Some say investors pay extra for Apple’s safety.

That is nonsense. You are on the market. The market can drop 10% in a few minutes. How can anyone think about safety there?

Apple or Nvidia at number one?

Apple briefly passed Nvidia in July. It can easily happen again. But in the future, with the AI boom, the longer it goes, the more we will need Nvidia, as much as Apple or more. Whatever Apple does, I lean more on Nvidia. That is our future. But again, that is just my opinion. I am not pushing anyone into anything.

What I expect on November 2

Something interesting. Either Apple explains to us why everything is so expensive, or we find out that smart people raised the price so they could later earn on those who went and bought Apple, because the speculation got too big.

Investors first, customers second?

One MacRumors reader wrote: “I miss the days when Apple seemed more focused on creating products people genuinely loved.” Another said the last keynote was an advertisement for the stock, not for the products.

I do not just agree, I have been saying it for a long time: in my opinion, Apple went down Elon Musk’s road. More show, more collecting money, more profit, instead of a real product that everyone praises. But thank God, at least they do not collect money for prototypes yet. That is the plus.

As a shareholder: sell or hold?

I will skip that. I do not want to advise anyone, and I do not want anyone to follow me. If you want my earlier take on analyst targets, read my JP Morgan $360 article, and for the iPhone side, my record market share article.

Featured photo: Apple Store Fifth Avenue by Jorge Láscar, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Disclosure: the author owns Apple shares. This article is opinion, not investment advice.

Apple $5 trillion: FAQ

Is Apple worth $5 trillion?

Yes. On October 14, 2026, Apple closed at $342.96 per share, a market value of about $5.005 trillion, the first close above $5 trillion in its history.

Which company was first to close above $5 trillion?

Nvidia, in October 2025. Nvidia is still the most valuable company at around $5.3 trillion.

Why did Apple stock rise when tech fell?

Apple rose 0.5% while Oracle, Meta, Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon and Google fell. Some investors see Apple as a safer place when worries about AI spending grow.

Who is Apple’s CEO?

John Ternus became Apple’s CEO on September 1, 2026, succeeding Tim Cook.

When does Apple report its next earnings?

Apple reports its fiscal fourth-quarter results on November 2, 2026.

Sources: 9to5Mac, MacRumors, The Wall Street Journal.

Our Take

Congratulations, Apple, and congratulations to shareholders, me included.

But for a normal iPhone user, $5 trillion means nothing. They do not have shares. They just want good Apple technology. And in my opinion, that is exactly what Apple should remember.