Apple's management score of 100 reflects a return on invested capital of 52.0% and a gross margin of 46.9%, figures that point to a business converting capital into profit with unusual efficiency, even while carrying debt at 1.5 times equity. The moat score of 58 is more measured, suggesting the competitive position is real but not judged to be as dominant as the returns alone might imply.
The margin of safety score of 14 comes from comparing the current price against three anchors built on an 8.7% growth assumption, itself capped below the 9.0% growth actually measured historically as a matter of deliberate conservatism. Even with that conservatism, the price sits well above the consensus buy price of $112.19, the 10-cap price of $94.71, and far above the margin of safety price of $43.03.
The tension is straightforward: the operating figures describe a business performing at a very high level, while the price already asks for a great deal of continued performance beyond what the model's conservative growth assumption accounts for, leaving little room for error priced in at current levels.
| Price | $336.13 |
| Market cap | $4.9T |
| P/E ratio | 38.5x |
| Return on invested capital | 52.0% |
| Gross margin | 46.9% |
| Debt to equity | 1.52x |
| Free cash flow yield | 2.6% |
| Growth rate used | 8.7% |
| Growth rate measured | 9.0% |
| Exit multiple assumed | 17.4x |
Every number above is built on assumptions that can be changed. In Moatly you can move the growth rate, the exit multiple and the margin of safety and watch every figure recalculate, so you are testing your own view of Apple Inc. rather than accepting ours.