Apple [NASDAQ: AAPL] Posts Record Quarter But Top Investor Urges Caution on Valuation

Apple Inc. [NASDAQ: AAPL] delivered a record-breaking fiscal second quarter in late April 2026, with revenue of $111.2 billion representing both a new Q2 high and 17% year-over-year growth.

iPhone revenue came in at $57 billion for the quarter, also a record, reflecting 22% year-over-year growth and demonstrating continued consumer appetite for Apple’s flagship product.

Services revenue was similarly strong, reaching $31 billion to set an all-time high and growing 16% year-over-year, underscoring the value of Apple’s increasingly important recurring revenue stream.

The company guided for Q3 2026 revenue growth of 14% to 17%, suggesting that management sees the current momentum as durable rather than a one-time outlier.

Apple shares rose approximately 8% in the week following the earnings release, adding to its position as one of the largest companies by market capitalisation in the world.

Despite all of that, Keithen Drury, a five-star investor ranked in the top 4% of stock professionals tracked by TipRanks, issued a pointed caution to those considering buying the stock at current levels.

“The iPhone maker is still a solid company, but I don’t think Apple’s stock returns from here will be nearly as explosive as those of many of its peers due to the premium it already carries,” Drury wrote in a widely circulated note.

Drury acknowledged that Apple’s second consecutive quarter of double-digit growth was meaningful and that iPhone and Services performed exactly as needed, given that those two units are by far the company’s most important revenue drivers.

His concern centres on the valuation Apple already commands relative to peers, suggesting that much of the future growth narrative is already embedded in the price and leaving limited room for the kind of outperformance that drives significant stock appreciation.

The analyst consensus remains broadly positive, with Wall Street maintaining a Moderate Buy rating on the stock, though average price targets suggest limited near-term upside from current levels.