Investing

Cramer Says Buy Apple Before New Phone Comes Out. Because Apple’s Duo Model Is, “Kind Of Astounding”

Jim Cramer just called Apple's first foldable phone kind of astounding and told followers to buy shares before it ships, but a closer look at supply constraints, memory costs, and a one-time earnings boost raises real questions about whether the…

By AJ Tiarsmith
Published September 30, 2026, 12:46pm ET · 3 min read

This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.

A bronze statue of a charging bull stands prominently on the right, facing left. In the top left, a large gray Apple logo is visible. The background is a vibrant green with translucent stock market data, including bar charts and numerical percentages like '+0.33%', '+0.28%', and '115.47'. Overlaid on the image are three black rectangular boxes with white text: 'ANOTHER', 'IPHONE', and 'SUPERCYCLE?'. A small '24/7 WALL ST' logo is in the top right corner.
The iconic Apple logo and a charging bull statue are set against a backdrop of rising stock charts, questioning the potential for an iPhone supercycle. This image encapsulates the bullish sentiment surrounding Apple's future performance and potential new iPhone releases. © Canva

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL | AAPL Price Prediction) got a fresh endorsement from Jim Cramer this morning. In a post on X, he told followers to “Buy the stock of Apple because of the DUO, not smart home… Duo is AMAZING”.

The Duo is Apple’s first foldable iPhone. It starts at $1,999 and does not reach stores until October 23. Apple already rose to a 52-week high of $341.07 on September 25, a week after Cramer told viewers the iPhone 18 would not rally the stock. Investors are being asked to pay up for a catalyst that has yet to ship.

AAPL price target

Cramer’s Own Receipts on the iPhone 18

On September 18, Cramer said of the new lineup: “The 18 is not going to rally here because it’s not the Duo. The Duo is not until October 23rd.” The stock rallied anyway. That rally came before any Duo shipment.

On September 25, Cramer said Apple and NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) are the only two stocks he has ever given his highest blessing: “own it, don’t trade it.” Today’s post extends that long-term stance.

Shares traded at $338.27 late this morning, up 2.69% on the day and down 0.44% over the past week. Apple is up 24.77% year to date and 33.45% over the past year. At a P/E near 43 and a market cap around $4.93 trillion, buyers are paying a premium for continued growth.

AAPL price scenario

How the Duo Plugs Into Apple’s Two Revenue Engines

Apple’s September 9 event, the first under new CEO John Ternus, pushed buyers upmarket. This fall’s lineup features no base iPhone 18 this fall, just the Pro and Pro Max, and the iPhone 18 lineup starts at $1,200. CNBC’s Fast Money reported that Apple presented the Duo as additive to the Apple ecosystem, with Handoff letting a phone number follow users across iPhones so owners can carry both a foldable and a Pro. The new Apple Upgrade leasing program helps make those price points affordable.

That matters because Apple runs on hardware plus recurring Services. In fiscal Q3 2026, revenue reached $109.42 billion, up 16.4%, and EPS of $2.02 beat the $1.89 consensus, the 9th straight EPS beat. iPhone revenue rose to $54.25 billion from $44.58 billion, while Services grew to $30.74 billion from $27.42 billion, with records in every category. Every premium device sold feeds App Store, iCloud and Apple Pay revenue for years, and the installed base passed 2.5 billion active devices in January.

AAPL earnings explorer

One caution for experienced readers: Apple’s July 30 8-K filing shows tariff refunds added about 2 percentage points to gross margin and roughly $0.11 to EPS, a one-time lift worth stripping out.

Supply Limits and Memory Costs Could Cap the Launch

Management guided September-quarter revenue growth of 9% to 11% and gross margin of 47% to 48%, while expecting supply constraints to increase significantly across iPhone, Mac and iPad. Tim Cook, then CEO, blamed “a 100-year flood on the memory pricing” and said, “We reluctantly raised prices.” A $1,999 foldable only moves the numbers if Apple can build enough of them.

Competition is another variable. Barron’s reported that Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) highlighted an AI threat to Apple from Meta (NASDAQ:META) and its Muse model, per a September 29 headline.

What to Watch Before and After October 23

Keep an eye on Duo shipping times after launch, Siri AI adoption (still gated behind a wait list) and Apple’s fiscal Q4 earnings report, where supply and margin commentary will show whether the Duo thesis reaches the income statement. Apple posts results on its investor relations page. After the July report, shares went from 340 at filing to 308.91 a day later despite a beat, a reminder that expectations run high.

Data Sources

  • Cramer buys Apple Duo call: provided Cramer’s September 30, 2026 X post quote and its timing.
  • Used to frame his Duo-over-smart-home rationale for holding Apple.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

1INVESTMENTS ARE NOT FDIC INSURED • ARE NOT BANK GUARANTEED • MAY LOSE VALUE

Brokerage and Active investing products offered through SoFi Securities LLC, member FINRA(www.finra.org)/SIPC(www.sipc.org).2The probability of a member receiving $3,000 is 0.028%. If you don’t make a selection in 45 days, you’ll no longer qualify for the promo. Members must fund their account with a minimum of $50.00 to qualify. The probability percentage is subject to decrease. Members are only eligible for the Stock Award promotion upon opening their first brokerage account; subsequent cash brokerage accounts are ineligible for the promo, including for members with multiple accounts.

3Other fees, such as exchange fees, may apply. Please view our fee disclosure to view a full listing of fees.

4There are limitations with fractional shares to consider before investing. During market hours fractional share orders are transmitted immediately in the order received. There may be system delays from receipt of your order until execution and market conditions may adversely impact execution prices. Outside of market hours orders are received on a not held basis and will be aggregated for each security then executed in the morning trade window of the next business day at market open. Share will be delivered at an average price received for executing the securities through a single batched order. Fractional shares may not be transferred to another firm. Fractional shares will be sold when a transfer or closure request is initiated. Please consider that selling securities is a taxable event.
AJ Tiarsmith

AJ spent 10 years writing about financial markets at The Motley Fool. His coverage centers on technology stocks and the broader macroeconomic trends, from interest rates to geopolitics,  that shape where markets are headed next. AJ is drawn to the stories where big-picture economics and individual companies collide.

All articles →