Riding piggyback on 1.5% rise in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Apple (AAPL) opened the new trading year by posting an all-time record high Monday, closing 136 points above its 2009 low of $78.20, set on Jan. 20.

Shares closed Monday at $214.1, up 3.28 points (1.56%) for the day. The stock has climbed steadily since mid-December on reports of strong holiday sales and rumors that its long-awaited tablet computer may finally be ready to ship.

In the past 12 months, Apple has outpaced the Dow more than eight fold and may still have room to grow. The Street’s median target for the stock is $247.5

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