Apple 'now visible in Microsoft's rearview mirror' as value swells

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
With Apple's annual revenue more than doubling since 2005, a new analysis looks at the possibility of the Mac maker surpassing its chief rival, Microsoft, as the world's most valuable technology company.



Gabriel Madway with Reuters offered a look at Apple's astounding growth, which has caused the Cupertino, Calif., company's market value to surge to $180 billion. Microsoft remains much larger, with a $250 billion market cap, but it is Apple's rapid growth that has raised the question of whether it could exceed its rival to the north and become the most valuable technology company in the world.



If AAPL stock were to hit $280, that would reportedly give the company a market value of $250 billion -- equaling that of Microsoft in its current state. Of course, that's a big 'if,' but with continued rapid iPhone expansion, growth of the Mac platform, and the anticipated introduction of a tablet device in the first quarter of 2010, some believe it's possible within the next year.



UBS Investment Research's Maynard J. Um believes Apple will hit $280, and analyst Gene Munster with Piper Jaffray has a price target of $277 for Apple. In addition, analyst Mike Abramsky with RBC Capital Markets has forecast that AAPL will hit $275 in the next 12 months. For comparison, analysts believe Microsoft could trade as high as $36 in the next year, which would reportedly bring its market cap to $320 billion.



"Apple is now visible in Microsoft's rearview mirror," Madway's report said.



Despite Apple's gains, Microsoft is still growing at a brisk pace. Since 2005, its revenue has risen 47 percent, to $58.4 billion. But Apple, in the same frame, more than doubled, reaching $36.5 billion. Earnings per share for the Mac maker saw a four-fold increase to $6.29.



Last quarter was record setting for Apple, which saw profits surge 46 percent on record sales of 3 million Macs and 7.4 million iPhones. The company's profits for its fourth financial quarter of 2009 were $1.67 billion, or $1.82 per diluted share, on sales of $9.87 billion.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 100
    desarcdesarc Posts: 642member
    Steve Ballmer must have some really lousy accountants for this to be considered a "rounding" error.
  • Reply 2 of 100
    Quote:

    "Apple is now visible in Microsoft's rearview mirror"





    It's more like the other way around if you ask me.





    Windows 7 still needs anti-malware software running (8 out of 10 viruses got in) and it's going to cripple the performance of all these cheap Win7 netbooks people are going to buy this holiday season. A nice shaft in the @ss again from your friends in Redmond.



    Same old Windows, just a new face.



    And now you can't run Snow Leopard on those Atom netbooks either.



    hahaha!
  • Reply 3 of 100
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    HAHA> how can you see in your rear view mirror when you're 90% vs 10% ahead - I ask you? pure fanboyism.



    But on a more serious note:



    http://earthlink.com.com/8301-13506_...part=earthlink
  • Reply 4 of 100
    Whole different ballgame now . . . with the tablet just around the corner.
  • Reply 5 of 100
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    If MSFT market cap decreases while APPL increases they might be equal at even a lower figure and sooner.
  • Reply 6 of 100
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by teckstud View Post


    HAHA> how you see in your rear view mirror when your 90% vs 10% ahead - I ask you? pure fanboyism.



    But on a more serious note:



    http://earthlink.com.com/8301-13506_...part=earthlink



    You still don't understand Apple's market, or the real significance of that 10%.



    Nokia also has dominant marketshare. Now compare your average Nokia smartphone to the iPhone.



    Windows is a bargain-basement brand, and sells like one.
  • Reply 7 of 100
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by teckstud View Post


    HAHA> how you see in your rear view mirror when your 90% vs 10% ahead - I ask you? pure fanboyism.]



    Objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear!
  • Reply 8 of 100
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by teckstud View Post


    Pure fanboyism.




    Can you blame the Apple fanboys? They've been right all along.
  • Reply 9 of 100
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by teckstud View Post


    HAHA> how you see in your rear view mirror when your 90% vs 10% ahead - I ask you? pure fanboyism.



    But on a more serious note:



    http://earthlink.com.com/8301-13506_...part=earthlink



    You don't. You look when you are 59% vs. 41% ahead.



    http://finance.google.com
  • Reply 10 of 100
    Apple's stock is too easy to manipulate for short-term gain for it to grow that high that fast and stay for any reasonable length of time.



    I can see them crossing within the next year or two, but it'll be more in the middle; somewhere around 220B.
  • Reply 11 of 100
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mstone View Post


    Objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear!



    Oh. Snap.



    Well done.











    Fuuuuu!!! Rounding error, rounding error, rounding error, rounding error, rounding error!!!





  • Reply 12 of 100
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by teckstud View Post


    HAHA> how you see in your rear view mirror when your 90% vs 10% ahead - I ask you? pure fanboyism.



    But on a more serious note:



    http://earthlink.com.com/8301-13506_...part=earthlink



    You're funny. You get all jacked up and accuse people of calling you names, and then you turn around and call satisfied Apple customers "fanboys/fanbois, etc."



    Does that mean we can call you all variations of your moniker and you won't complain?
  • Reply 13 of 100
    wizard69wizard69 Posts: 13,377member
    Let's face it the important thing is that Apple survives as a company that can continue to innovate and move tech in new directions. Overtaking MS doesn't help with that at all. In fact it can lead to Wall Street putting a lot of pressure on a company.



    A ravenous Wall Street has ruined more than a few companies. If focus is taken off products and R&D then Apple gets screwed. Even a CEO of the decade would have trouble dealling with to many demands from the markets.





    Dave
  • Reply 14 of 100
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mstone View Post


    Objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear!



    Actually if Apple is being seen in Microsoft's rear view mirror, it's because Apple screwed up and let Microsoft catch up again.



    You see, we Macheads have a twisted view of reality.



    We expect our computers to work for us and not us for the computer.





    I know it sounds strange, but I've never swore at my computer, or threw it across the room, or beat the monitor with the keyboard like I've seen many Windows users do.



    I've certainly haven't gone to jail because a virus loaded my Windows based computer with "frameware".



    http://it.slashdot.org/story/09/11/0...-Your-Computer
  • Reply 15 of 100
    Now this is the article I have been wanting to see written for a long time. It will happen soon enough and be headlines news AROUND THE WORLD. You don't have to have a 90% install base of a crap piece of operating system to topple Microsoft, you just have to be relevant on several fronts. That is exactly what Apple is.



    Once this perception is given by the media and equally the public, it will be a huge snowball effect for Apple adoption. They will suddenly be seen as a completely relevant player by far more people.



    Cool deal. I hope it happens within Steve Jobs lifetime. It's not THE solution for them or the silver bullet by any means, but it will be a major milestone and will unavoidably be recognized.



    Good job Apple..... overall, good job! Keep up the pace!
  • Reply 16 of 100
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Quadra 610 View Post


    You still don't understand Apple's market, or the real significance of that 10%.



    Nokia also has dominant marketshare. Now compare your average Nokia smartphone to the iPhone.



    Windows is a bargain-basement brand, and sells like one.



    Yes, this is a good example, Nokia sells 15 times more phones than apple, but apple is still making more profit from the phones it sells than what Nokia does.

    http://www.businessweek.com/globalbi...mpaign_id=yhoo



    As for MS, for the time being, apple can't expect to catch up much on the PC market share percentage. That's as long as corporations continue to blindly buy truckloads of PCs. I don't think that this will change very soon.



    To conclude, if you just compare unit numbers it will take a long long time for apple to catch up to MS (or Nokia). However, for these companies the real game is the bottom line: profits.
  • Reply 17 of 100
  • Reply 18 of 100
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Quadra 610 View Post


    You still don't understand Apple's market, or the real significance of that 10%.



    Nokia also has dominant marketshare. Now compare your average Nokia smartphone to the iPhone.



    Windows is a bargain-basement brand, and sells like one.



    No I understand the whole "premium ", Lexus, BMW analogy or what have you. But why must we contantly compare them then if they are so different in their goals. Why are Apple fans so stuck in this "vengeance is mine" mindset with MS and it's profits and its share. It's so ridiculous!!!!!!
  • Reply 19 of 100
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by teckstud View Post


    HAHA> how you see in your rear view mirror when your 90% vs 10% ahead - I ask you? pure fanboyism.



    But on a more serious note:



    http://earthlink.com.com/8301-13506_...part=earthlink



    please dont engage this guy with his bs. he knows its bs and he just says it to be a dick.



    can somebody please explain to me why teckstud is still here? he never has anything to say that isnt negative and obviously has ulterior motives. and i distinctly remember seeing that he was banned not too long ago. WTF is going on here? im tired of seeing this d bag dominating all the threads with his BS.
  • Reply 20 of 100
    2012.
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