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Apple editorial news photograph accompanying BofA analyst coverage
Photo: Investing.com

Apple Stock Rises 1% Near 52-Week High After Fed Hike Hits Tech

Fox Business2 min read6 sources

Why is Apple stock up today?

Apple (AAPL) stock rose 1% Thursday, holding near its $344 yearly high as the Fed's first rate hike since 2023 sent most Magnificent Seven peers lower the prior session.

Key numbers

AAPL price (Sep 17)$335.82+1.0% on the day
AAPL 52-week high$344.57reached Jul 29, 2026 — stock 2.5% below that level today
AAPL YTD return 2026+23.5%vs Microsoft +2.5%, Meta +2.9%, Tesla -18.2%
Q3 FY2026 iPhone revenue$54.3B+22% vs. year ago (per [4])
BofA price target$370cut from $380 on Sep 10; Buy rating reiterated Sep 17
Fed benchmark rate (post-hike)3.75%–4.00%+25bps Sep 16 — first hike since 2023

What happened

Apple (AAPL) stock rose 1% Thursday, holding near its $344 yearly high as the Fed's first rate hike since 2023 sent most Magnificent Seven peers lower the prior session. The Federal Reserve raised rates 25 basis points Wednesday to 3.75%–4.00%, pushing the 10-year Treasury yield above 5% and the Dow Jones down 600 points. Apple is up 23.5% in 2026 — far ahead of peers like Microsoft (+2.5%), Meta (+2.9%), and Tesla (-18.2%). Bank of America analyst Wamsi Mohan reiterated Buy with a $370 target Thursday, noting carrier trade-in credits of up to $1,200 help support iPhone 18 demand.

Why it matters

Apple stock has quietly become a safe haven inside the technology sector itself — a place investors park money when the rest of big tech looks risky. While competitors like Microsoft, Alphabet, and Meta are each spending well over $100 billion on AI data centers in 2026, Apple is spending a fraction of that, making its profits far more predictable. Predictable profits hold up better when interest rates rise, because higher rates squeeze the premium investors will pay for future earnings growth — and the Federal Reserve is now signaling more hikes ahead.

Who this affects

Marketbullish
Medium impact
Institutional desks rotate into AAPL as a rate-hike hedge.
Companybullish
Medium impact
Apple shares near yearly highs; BofA Buy implies 10% upside.
Competitorsbearish
Medium impact
Alphabet, Microsoft, Meta face deeper sell-offs tied to AI capex.
Industrymixed
Medium impact
Rate hike divides tech: AI-heavy spenders hurt, low-capex firms hold.

Apple vs Microsoft, Alphabet, Nvidia, Meta

AppleAAPL$4.85T+1.0%+23.5%-2.5%
MicrosoftMSFT$3.64T+1.1%+2.5%—
AlphabetGOOGL$4.19T+0.7%+10.3%—
NvidiaNVDA$5.16T+2.3%+28.5%—
MetaMETA$1.71T+0.9%+2.9%—

As of 2026-09-17

How we got here

  1. AAPL hits 52-week high of $344.57; Apple briefly crosses $5T market cap.

  2. John Ternus becomes Apple CEO; Tim Cook moves to executive chairman.

  3. Apple launches iPhone 18 Pro ($1,199) and iPhone Duo foldable ($1,999).

  4. BofA cuts AAPL target from $380 to $370 on margin pressure; keeps Buy.

  5. Fed hikes 25bp to 3.75%–4.00%; Dow falls 600 points; AAPL closes up 0.3%.

What to watch

  • First-weekend iPhone 18 Pro sales data; Apple rarely discloses unit numbers.2026-09-22
  • iPhone Duo pre-orders open; lead times will signal true foldable demand.2026-10-16
  • Apple Q4 FY2026 earnings; management guided 9–11% revenue growth.2026-10-29

Educational content only. Not investment advice.

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