Apple briefly passes Exxon as world's largest company by market cap
During a volatile day of trading on Tuesday, Apple briefly passed oil giant Exxon Mobil to become the most valuable company in the world, in terms of market capitalization.
AAPL stock closed the day below XOM with a market cap of $346.74 billion, pushed 5.45 percent higher by a 19.26-point increase in the stock price. Apple ended the day trading at $372.47 per share.
Exxon finished Tuesday retaining its title as the largest company in the world by market cap, a claim it briefly lost during trading on Tuesday. Exxon finished the day with a market cap of $352 billion, its stock having recovered from losses to go up $1.41 for the day, or 2.01 percent.
Apple's brief stay at the top on Tuesday came faster than most expected. The iPhone maker was separated from Exxon by about $70 billion only a few weeks ago.
Now only a few billion dollars sit between the market caps of Exxon and Apple, leaving the companies in a position to potentially swap places once again. Apple remains the No. 2 largest company in the world, having passed PetroChina Co. last September.
Apple surpassed its rival Microsoft in May of 2010 when its market cap reached $222 billion, but the iPhone maker has since left its rival in the dust. Microsoft's market cap Tuesday afternoon hovered around $210 billion.
AAPL trading prices from Tuesday. Chart via Yahoo.
By consistently turning in record quarters that exceed investor expectations, Apple has seen its stock pushed to new heights in recent weeks. In its last quarter, Apple's profits grew 125 percent year over year with record sales of 20.34 million iPhones and 9.25 million iPads.
And while Apple's market cap blew past Microsoft some time ago, the company surpassed the Redmond, Wash., Windows maker in terms of both quarterly sales and profits in April of this year. Prior to that, Microsoft had posted less revenue but greater profits than Apple.
AAPL stock closed the day below XOM with a market cap of $346.74 billion, pushed 5.45 percent higher by a 19.26-point increase in the stock price. Apple ended the day trading at $372.47 per share.
Exxon finished Tuesday retaining its title as the largest company in the world by market cap, a claim it briefly lost during trading on Tuesday. Exxon finished the day with a market cap of $352 billion, its stock having recovered from losses to go up $1.41 for the day, or 2.01 percent.
Apple's brief stay at the top on Tuesday came faster than most expected. The iPhone maker was separated from Exxon by about $70 billion only a few weeks ago.
Now only a few billion dollars sit between the market caps of Exxon and Apple, leaving the companies in a position to potentially swap places once again. Apple remains the No. 2 largest company in the world, having passed PetroChina Co. last September.
Apple surpassed its rival Microsoft in May of 2010 when its market cap reached $222 billion, but the iPhone maker has since left its rival in the dust. Microsoft's market cap Tuesday afternoon hovered around $210 billion.
AAPL trading prices from Tuesday. Chart via Yahoo.
By consistently turning in record quarters that exceed investor expectations, Apple has seen its stock pushed to new heights in recent weeks. In its last quarter, Apple's profits grew 125 percent year over year with record sales of 20.34 million iPhones and 9.25 million iPads.
And while Apple's market cap blew past Microsoft some time ago, the company surpassed the Redmond, Wash., Windows maker in terms of both quarterly sales and profits in April of this year. Prior to that, Microsoft had posted less revenue but greater profits than Apple.
Comments
Apple remains the No. 2 largest company in the world, having passed PetroChina Co. last September.
A lot of sites are just saying "US" but I chock it up to shoddy reporting.
Would love to see Steve do a hostile takeover and just part it out like a stolen Camry.
Oh how I wish I would have invested a few ducats back in the 80's or early 90's...
And to think that today you could be worth more than Kazakhstan ...
Apple does things with such efficiency, it is simply amazing. Everything from product design, product line development and pruning, outsourced manufacturing, supply chain management, marketing, advertising, distribution, selling add-ons (such as AppleCare), customer service, maintaining balance sheet strength - every business function is performed with great excellence.
Is there any wonder it is the most valuable company in the world?
And, there is lots of growth ahead. Even though Wall Street nincompoops may be unable to see it.
AAPL has a better return than any oil company.
And once they get supplies even cheaper there will be no touching them.
(investing in AAPL since 2001 when everyone told me I was crazy, but I realized the iPod was the game-changing turning point)
Do you want to sell oil for the rest of your life or do you want to change the world?
Imagine IF Microsoft and Google DID not license their work, wisely as Apple ?
Another proof that German economic model beat the Anglo-Saxon ( USA & UK ) BIG time.
Apple success IS based on concrete "work" as Germany is based on manufacturing, while Google's and Microsoft's IS bases on dangling on OTHER's shoulders ( windows' PC and Android cartel vendors ) like UK and USA economic model after the 80's to these days.
Hope you learn a thing with this, otherwise China will make you eat yr pride ( for USA citizens ).
EPS is what is important.
Here are some comparisons for the day's end and the percentage in which Apple is besting them:
A lot of sites are just saying "US" but I chock it up to shoddy reporting.
Ok, I know this is horribly pedantic of me, but you're adding an extra 100% on all of those. Apple is 162% of MS' value, or 62% more valuable. etc.
Another proof that German economic model beat the Anglo-Saxon ( USA & UK ) BIG time.
Apple success IS based on concrete "work" as Germany is based on manufacturing, while Google's and Microsoft's IS bases on dangling on OTHER's shoulders ( windows' PC and Android cartel vendors ) like UK and USA economic model after the 80's to these days.
Your analogy is terrible, utterly terrible. In fact Samsung is far more like the German model than Apple, Apple is a quintessentially american firm. A german firm on that scale would be building it's own hardware, it would likely be a conglomerate and based around cheap finance from a landesbank. Kinda like a Chaebol based around cheap finance from a captive private bank.
Another proof that German economic model beat the Anglo-Saxon ( USA & UK ) BIG time.
Apple success IS based on concrete "work" as Germany is based on manufacturing, while Google's and Microsoft's IS bases on dangling on OTHER's shoulders ( windows' PC and Android cartel vendors ) like UK and USA economic model after the 80's to these days.
Hope you learn a thing with this, otherwise China will make you eat yr pride ( for USA citizens ).
Interesting angle you take here. It assumes that design, software building, R&D, sales, management, etc., are all real work, just like manufacturing is for Germany. I agree. We don't really have terms for this shift into a post-industrial economy, other than maybe "knowledge industry." I think we could do better.
Anyway, it shouldn't be a matter of pride for Americans, but only of guarded optimism -- that the peculiar confluence of talent and expertise and adventurousness that began in Silicon Valley in the 50s and 60s can keep exporting something that the rest of the world actually wants. Besides bad stuff like fast food, that is.
Apple drew on the silicon experience in the valley and combined it with a 60s countercultural idea of wanting to "change the world." That is what they are exporting, with the crucial help of an ascendent industrial economy, China. So there's no room for pride here, just a hope that we can learn from this, like you say.
On the German vs. Anglo-Saxon paradigm, that could work if we just changed the terms. (Anglo-Saxons are Germanic, so your formulation doesn't really compute.) Better, maybe, to focus on the work and industrial traditions of central Europe, and thus you could include the Czech, Bohemian, Slav, Austrian and Swiss contributions, which are massive.
But I wouldn't know how to come up with snappy terms for the distinction. Work-centric vs. narcissistic? But I don't think the British are so self-absorbed like my fellow Americans are.
Edit: I think cloudgazer misinterprets. Germans have remained industrial because they are good and disciplined at it. US and UK no longer have the focus and will to put up with manufacturing development. You have to keep evolving in machine making, you can't just do the same thing like you always did. I see very few signs that GM and Ford get it. If anything they've become more perverse under the challenges they face from Germany, Japan and Korea.
Ok, I know this is horribly pedantic of me, but you're adding an extra 100% on all of those. Apple is 162% of MS' value, or 62% more valuable. etc.
You're right. My bad.
Your analogy is terrible, utterly terrible. In fact Samsung is far more like the German model than Apple, Apple is a quintessentially american firm. A german firm on that scale would be building it's own hardware, it would likely be a conglomerate and based around cheap finance from a landesbank. Kinda like a Chaebol based around cheap finance from a captive private bank.
Don't forget that everything that they could get away with would be built in eastern Europe.
I doubt if Apple will ever be able to convince investors and Wall Street that the stock is undervalued and that Apple has plenty of room to grow. As an Apple shareholder I'm not interested in whether Apple has the highest market cap or not unless it changes Wall Street's view of Apple as a powerful company to be reckoned with in the entire tech industry. I'm much more interested in seeing Apple share price at $450 or $500. I want some of the market cap wealth in my pocket.
Where is Michael Dell on the list? You remember him, right? The one who dissed Apple when it was down as though he was King of the World?
Would love to see Steve do a hostile takeover and just part it out like a stolen Camry.
I am sure you didn't ntend to, but you just insulted a Camry.
And to think that today you could be worth more than Kazakhstan ...
Post of the day!
Edit: I think cloudgazer misinterprets. Germans have remained industrial because they are good and disciplined at it. US and UK no longer have the focus and will to put up with manufacturing development. You have to keep evolving in machine making, you can't just do the same thing like you always did. I see very few signs that GM and Ford get it. If anything they've become more perverse under the challenges they face from Germany, Japan and Korea.
It's very very debatable. Actually the UK has a couple of amazing industrial firms, I'm thinking of Rolls Royce (the engine company) and British Aerospace. What makes these firms unusual? Massive ( government supplied ) cheap financing, much like so much of german industry.
The fact is that where cheap money isn't enough German discipline has proven insufficient, which is why Siemens is no longer a big name in handsets. In fact the only big German tech firm I can think of is SAP.