NEW YORK — Apple’s stock has reached $700 for the first time, setting a record for the company the day after it announced that orders for its iPhone 5 topped 2 million in the first 24 hours.

The shares hit as high as $701.44 in morning trading Tuesday, up a quarter of a percent from Monday’s close. It later fell.

The rally in its stock price puts its value at $656 billion, more than any public company has ever been worth, if one ignores inflation.

The Cupertino, Calif., company started taking orders for the iPhone 5 last week. Apple now says that while most orders will be delivered on Friday, demand for the iPhone 5 exceeds the initial supply. That means some of the devices will be delivered in October.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.