Shares of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) stock popped on Monday morning, up 3.1% through 11:15 a.m. ET -- but why Apple popped is owing to something that happened on Sunday. Specifically, last night, investment bank Goldman Sachs announced it was initiating coverage of the tech giant with a buy rating and a price target that looks as if it should be on a for-sale sign: "$199."  

And even though 45 analysts already cover Apple, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence -- and even though 34 of them already say Apple is a buy -- investors are sitting up and taking notice...that Goldman Sachs has finally noticed Apple.

So what exactly has Goldman Sachs noticed about Apple that makes this banker think it's a buy? At its core, Goldman's note focuses on the fact that a lot of people own Apple products. There are currently 1.1 billion active iPhones alone out in the world, reports StreetInsider.com, and that doesn't even count all the Apple-branded computers, smartwatches, and other tech gizmos in existence.  

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Source Fool.com