Apple Gets First $1 Trillion Valuation From Wall Street Brokerage Cantor Fitzgerald

Wall Street is getting very excited about Apple Inc. Cantor Fitzgerald became the first Wall Street brokerage to put a price target of $1 trillion on the company, according to the Financial Times.

The brokerage raised its price target to $180 from the already-bullish $160 target it set back in February. Based on the current number of shares outstanding, the new estimate would give Apple a valuation of $1.o5 trillion, more than twice the current market value of Google ($383 billion) and Exxon Mobil ($359 billion.). Cantor raised its target based in part on Apple's growing strength in China. "We believe Apple's iPhone portfolio and position in China have never been stronger," analyst Brian White wrote in a research note.

Cantor's $180 price target represents a 42 percent premium over its current share price of $127 on the NASDAQ. With it, Cantor joined a number of Wall Street firms that have recently their price targets on Apple: analysts at Cowan and Company raised their target from $115 to $135; Morgan Stanley put a $160 price target on Apple; and Stifel Nicolaus put a $150 price target on the company last week. Bank of America/Merrill Lynch maintained its "buy" rating with a $140 price target.

The Apple Watch is its first all-new product category since the iPad; Apple is also reported to be developing a TV service to be released in the summer.

Unlike the iPhone, which had a delayed launch in China, the Apple Watch will debut in all markets simultaneously. Even with a delay, Apple's iPhone 6 became the top-selling smartphone in China, and anticipation of the Apple Watch is high. Shoppers in Shanghai appear to be eager to get their hands on Apple Watch, and of course a robust market of Android-powered counterfeit Apple Watches appeared on e-commerce sites like Taobao.