Holiday Glow Shines on Apple

Updated from 3:34 p.m. EST

Wall Street analysts gave investors in Apple (AAPL Quote) an early Christmas present on Monday: a bundle of upbeat reports that helped send the company's shares to an all-time high.

Apple's iPod digital music players appear to be a holiday hit, selling out or in short supply at a number of retailers, the analysts noted. That, plus the potential for an even better year next year, led analysts at Deutsche Bank and Piper Jaffray to raise their price targets on Apple's stock.

"Our checks over the Thanksgiving weekend suggest that demand for iPods and iMacs is strong and that Apple has sufficient supply to meet demand (so far)," said Deutsche Bank's Chris Whitmore, who raised his price target on Apple to $79 from $60. "We believe Apple is off to a very strong start to the holiday season." ...