SAWT BEIRUT INTERNATIONAL

| 6 December 2024, Friday |

Apple becomes first firm to hit $3tn market value

Apple, the world’s largest technological corporation, has become the first to have a stock market valuation of $3 trillion (£2.2 trillion).

Since co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs launched the first iPhone in 2007, the company’s share price has increased by around 5,800%.

However, its value fell somewhat from that high point, ending Monday’s trading day in New York at $2.99tn.

As a result of coronavirus lockdowns, Apple has been one of the great beneficiaries of the epidemic, with spending on electronics increasing.

“Hiting $3 trillion is another historic occasion for Apple as the firm continues to prove the critics wrong,” Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said.

It took little over 16 months for Apple’s stock market capitalization to climb from $2 trillion to $3 trillion, as demand for the world’s largest technology businesses skyrocketed as consumers became increasingly dependant on smartphones, tablets, and laptops during lockdowns.

In August 2018, the business became the first to have a stock market valuation of $1 trillion.

The iPhone accounts for over half of the company’s revenues, but it is also well-known for its iPad tablets and Mac desktops.

Software, offered through the Apple store, storage space via the iCloud, and services such as its music, video, and fitness subscription platforms are becoming increasingly essential aspects of the company.

“The Services business, which we think is worth $1.5 trillion, is the foundation of Apple’s valuation re-rating,” Ives writes.

In August, Apple CEO Tim Cook earned more than five million shares of the company’s stock as he celebrated ten years in the position.

According to a corporate filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, he sold the majority of the shares for more than $750 million.

It was part of the agreement he made when he took over from co-founder Steve Jobs.

The award was based on how well Apple’s stock did in comparison to other companies in the S&P 500 stock index.

Based in Cupertino, California, Steve Jobs and his business partners Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne launched Apple in 1976.

The corporation debuted on the public market in 1980, with a market capitalization of $1.8 billion.

In November, the original Apple computer manufactures by Wozniak and Jobs fetched $400,000 at auction in the US.

    Source:
  • BBC NEWS