Steve Jobs turned Apple around when he returned to the company ten years ago. At the time of his return, Apple was in serious financial trouble and lacked direction (was it a software company? A hardware company? What was its future?). He reorganized management--firing a whole bunch of people--slashed departments, and, perhaps most importantly, realized what was needed to reinvigorate Apple so it could thrive (that vision thing...). His understanding of design, the consumer, technology... was the root of Apple's success, not to mention NeXT's contribution to what we now know as OSX. Without NeXT (aka, Steve Jobs), who knows where the Macintosh or Apple would be right now.
Ultimately, a stock is only as good as its fundamentals, and without Jobs's return, and subsequent leadership, Apple wouldn't be a $150+ billion company with no debt, an ever-growing customer base, expanding margins..., and, thus, AAPL would not be the incredible investment it became after Jobs's return.
The reason analysts have high estimates for AAPL is because of the growth engines that have resulted from Jobs's vision. I'm not saying that he does all the work and gets all the credit, but, again, it is his leadership that has brought Apple to where it is now. The analysts' estimates would not be high if Apple's fundamentals didn't warrant it. And Apple beats those estimates because of its sterling fundamentals, growing margins, and expanding consumer base. The analysts don't randomly give Apple high estimates, which Apple just happens to beat.
The fact is, Steve Jobs, IS the driving force behind both Apple and AAPL. His vision, ability to motivate, and unwillingness to compromise have given birth to some of the greatest consumer/electronics products of the century. It is his leadership that brought Apple back from the brink of oblivion, his leadership that continues to invigorate the company (and all that entails), and his leadership that has led AAPLs meteoric rise over the past decade.
