Apple (AAPL) Closing In on $600

It seems there’s no slowing down this Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) freight train.

The world’s largest tech stock continues to grow by the minute. It’s up another 3 points this morning to establish a new all-time high of $593 a share. At this point, $600 a share seems to be a foregone conclusion.

Since Monday, Apple stock is up 9%. It has climbed 63% since it was a measly $363 a share back on November 25. Back then Apple’s market cap was less than $400 billion, trailing oil giant Exxon (NYSE: XOM). Today Apple is valued at $552 billion – outpacing Exxon and all other U.S. stocks by at least $148 billion.

Such unrelenting ascension for what was already a mega-cap stock is staggering. But so were Apple’s earnings last quarter, when the company’s $13.1 billion in profits was the second-most profitable quarter in history behind Exxon’s $14.8 billion in the third quarter of 2008.

With the release of its new iPad last week and the Apple TV set to debut later this month, Apple is in position to continue growing its earnings. While no company has ever managed to sustain a $500 billion valuation for an extended period of time, few stocks have been on a tear like this. Every time analysts have insisted that Apple is due for a pullback over the last three months, the stock has continued to defy the odds.

At this point it would be foolish to bet against Apple. No matter how crazy $600 a share sounds.