$5 Trillion Mark Reached as Tim Cook Exits and John Ternus Takes the Helm at Apple

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) has reached a historic milestone of $5 trillion in market capitalization, coinciding with Tim Cook's final earnings call as CEO. In his last appearance at the helm, Cook emphasized Apple's ongoing investments in AI and its exploration of running micro-large language models directly on personal iPhones.

Apple posted a strong fiscal third quarter for 2026, with revenue climbing 16% to $109.4 billion compared to the same period last year. Earnings per share increased by 29% to $2.02, and gross margin expanded from 46.5% to 50.1%, partly due to a tariff benefit.

iPhone sales rose 22% during the quarter, solidifying Apple's position as the leading premium smartphone manufacturer worldwide. Mac sales also impressed with a 29% year-over-year increase, indicating continued strong demand for Apple hardware across multiple product categories.

Under the new leadership of John Ternus, who took over from Cook on his final earnings call, Apple is expected to maintain its disciplined and shareholder-focused approach. The company has returned more than 2,600% to investors since Cook's tenure began in 2011.