Apple shares top $200 for the first time

It’s been a great year for Mac fans and Apple. The company released its much-anticipated iPhone in June and refreshed its line of notebook computers and the entire iPod line during the year – adding a new member to the family, the iPod touch. It also hit a number of milestones in 2007 including its 100 millionth iPod sold in April, followed by its 3 billionth iTunes song in June, and just today, the company’s stock has hit the $200 mark for the first time.

Apple shares have traded between $76.77 and $199.33 in the past year, rising steadily since January. And luckily for Apple, 2008 continues to look bright with its notebooks ranked among the top-selling computers at Amazon.com during the Christmas shopping season, and rumors of an upcoming 3G version of the iPhone and a $1,500 NAND flash-based sub-notebook. That said, expectations for Macworld are often so high that a failure to launch an earth-shaking product in January could dent Apple’s stock price.