The staff of Fortune recently assembled its predictions for 2016. Here’s one of our forecasts.
Apple (AAPL) just announced record earnings for fiscal 2015, posting nearly one-quarter of a trillion dollars in revenue, and it remains the most valuable public company by far. Apple briefly held the title of the world’s first $700 billion company in the first half of 2015, and Wall Street analysts believe it’ll shatter that mark next year: Their average 12-month price target of $149 would give Apple a market capitalization of $831 billion. To get there, Apple shares would have to rise 22%. But considering its track record, it seems realistic to expect that Apple will justify that kind of bump, by continuing to gain smartphone market share and achieve strong growth in emerging economies.
This article is part of the 2016 Fortune Crystal Ball, a package of 33 predictions about business, politics and the economy by the writers and editors of Fortune. To see the entire package, click here.