Stock investors love it, of course. Why wouldn't they? Apple is the third-biggest dividend payer in the U.S. behind Fannie Mae and Exxon Mobil Corp., which is music to any investor's ears when bonds are paying historically little. And debt investors seem to be just fine with forking their money over to the company; they've eagerly bought up multiple debt offerings from Apple so far this year, with the seventh 2017 bond sale on track to get the company's usual warm reception. 

This raises longer-term risks and threats to the company that aren't highlighted often, if ever.

As long as Apple keeps churning out loads and loads of cash, all this is fine. Apple generates more cash than any other public U.S. company, and it's spending its money both to invest in its business and to return money to stockholders. Apple's spending on research and development has also increased sharply in recent years, as have its capital expenditures on things like manufacturing equipment, computer centers and its retail stores. In short, Apple produces enough cash to do everything a business is supposed to do: reward its owners, support its existing products and plan for the future.

Eoin Treacy's view

Apple has mastered the art of milking its legions of fans by bringing out new products on a predictable schedule that iterate on previous offerings by being just better enough to justify the outlay.

Additionally, it is among an increasing number of companies that have employed an innovative strategy to bring its money home from overseas by issuing debt so that it can be returned to investors without paying corporate taxes. As the above article highlights, that policy will be fine as long as revenues remain robust.

Apple has rallied impressively over the last few months and is now as overextended relative to trend mean as at any time in the last five years. With the hotly anticipated reveal of the 10th anniversary edition of the iPhone due next week it is worth considering that a lot of enthusiasm has already been priced into the shares.

Considering the fact Apple is a major constituent of Wall Street indices it could act as a headwind if it were to revert towards the mean.