As Apple sets a new record, Wall Street remains conflicted about the stock’s trajectory in the near-term. The iPhone maker recorded a new all-time high on Monday, a week after hitting an intraday high. Last week, Apple unveiled its new mixed reality headset and a bunch of other upgrades at its annual developer conference, sparking some excitement around the metaverse. Since the start of 2023, the stock is up about 41%, boosted by renewed optimism among investors for the tech sector and growing enthusiasm for artificial intelligence. AAPL YTD climbs Apple stock in 2023. But with the stock surging leaving Apple about 2% below Wall Street’s consensus price target, questions remain about the possibility of more upside in the near term. next time. Concerns about weak iPhone demand and unattractive risk/reward also lingered, prompting UBS to downgrade the stock late Monday. As of Tuesday afternoon, Apple stock was trading at more than 31 times price-to-earnings, a multiple of the broader S&P 500 index. With shares trading at such an expensive price, Paul Meeks of Independent Solutions Wealth Management said he refrained from buying more and kept his current position. “I think if you’re a tech investor, it’s such a big part of the index that you have to own it almost forever,” the portfolio manager said. “When it’s expensive, you sell hard, and when it’s cheap, you buy a little more but you never get out of your position.” Despite Apple’s stock price plunge and some reservations about its valuation, many analysts remain upbeat. Amid the spike, CFRA Research’s Angelo Zino maintained a buy rating and $190 price target for the stock, but said that upside target is not out of question if momentum continues. Looking ahead, Zino sees a rebound in the services sector as a short-term catalyst for the stock, even though the company has weathered the comparisons easily year over year. He sees foldable phones as a potential long-term driver for the stock. “If those factors come to fruition, we think there is upside potential for consensus estimates out there, as well as potential for additional multiples expansion,” the analyst said. Appreciating Apple’s potential, Wedbush Securities’ Dan Ives recently raised his share price target to $220, reflecting a roughly 20% gain from Monday’s closing price. According to the analyst, Wall Street is underestimating the pent-up upgrade cycle that comes with new iPhones and the re-acceleration of services. Ives called betting against the company and CEO Tim Cook a “wrong move” as the stock hits a $3 trillion market cap and Apple enters its next phase of growth. “I understand that right now the path of least resistance is to be cautious on the negatives for Apple and say it’s gone too far, but I believe we’re still in the middle before a super cycle. small take place,” he added. that he expects the risk-taking sentiment to continue. “When Big Tech is at risk, Cupertino will be at the forefront and center of that rally,” Ives said.