Apple's Value Tops $300 Billion, Is World's Second Most Valuable Company

Only two companies in the world currently top $300 billion in market capitalization. One of those is oil giant, Exxon Mobil. the other is now Apple.

While Goldamn Sachs' investment in Facebook, and the social media giant's valuation at $50 billion grabbed headlines, Apple somewhat quietly achieved its highest valuation ever. Now it's considered the world's second most valuable company, behind Exxon Mobil by $73 billion, according to Fortune.

Apple stock jumped more than $7 (2.25%) Monday morning as a wide market rally marked the begining of 2011. As a result, the market capitalization (the stock price times the number of outstanding shares) of the tech giant rose over the $300 million mark. Apple shares topped $300 in October, which put the company's value at about $274 billion. In May 2010, Apple passed Microsoft to become the world's most valuable tech stock.

The dramatic rise, not only in the final months of 2010 but the entirety of the year, as been spurred by record earnings. In the fourth quarter alone Apple sold 3.89 million Macs, 14.1 million iPhones, 9.05 million iPods and 4.19 million iPads, according to Mashable.

However, it's unlikely that Apple will pass Exxon Mobil anytime soon, as the gap between the two companies has actually grown (now $73 billion, up from $50 billion in October). Especially with oil prices on the up-and-up, Exxon is expected to maintain its spot at number one.

Comments

[RTIII]

06:58 PM on 01/05/2011

And to think I turned down a job at Apple in 1983 to work for Digital. -shrug-

[TaiJi2]

12:54 PM on 01/05/2011

All this fan-boy bashing and gushing every time an apple story appears is real entertainment. Where else do you get to witness so much passion over so little significance? You know, when you walk onto a construction site, you can just about tell what trade a worker is in by the brand of cordless drill he has - but what you'll never hear is an argument about it.

[TaiJi2]

12:48 PM on 01/05/2011

Come on everybody! Buy a share or two of Apple; let's take down Exxon at last!!!!

[rebel9999]

12:09 PM on 01/05/2011

Only in America can a guy like Steve Jobs become one of the wealthiest men on the planet.

[rikster]

09:19 AM on 01/05/2011

let me see....where are these Apple products being manufactured........?

[smoke1]

11:30 PM on 01/04/2011

So who has more money,Steve Jobs or Bill Gates?

[redmaple]

10:48 PM on 01/04/2011

And World's most overvalued company. If anybody think that this thing is not going to implode, they are out of their mind. This has bubble writen all over it.

[hagagaga]

10:22 PM on 01/04/2011

iHatethiscompanywiththeirteribleoperatingsystemandtheirstupidproductnames

[fourthestatepost]

10:10 AM on 01/05/2011

co-sign

[noob1]

06:37 PM on 01/04/2011

Why do I doubt this? eh?

[g4dualie]

08:03 PM on 01/04/2011

Because you're noob1.

[Sansea]

02:47 PM on 01/04/2011

They create technology we didn't know we needed. A sure recipe for success!

This is written on my iPad, something I had no idea had value or usefulness until I got one and now I do EVERTHING on it. I bought one for my accountant for Christmas. Her husband is a genuine Luddite -- who is now grousing about not getting enough time to play bridge on the darn thing!

Wish I bought stock when they were in the tank and needed Microsoft to save their bacon.

[mozartian]

10:05 AM on 01/05/2011

I'm glad you're enjoying your iPad and all but...

That Apple needed MS to save its bacon is a myth. "Microsoft’s $150 stock investment was the result of a settlement of a lawsuit... Apple suit: Video for Windows cribbed from QuickTime code"

The whole story here:
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/apple/stop-the-lies-the-day-that-microsoft-saved-apple/7036

[jasev01]

12:32 PM on 01/04/2011

And here is your next bubble folks. What a joke! Seriously, the 2nd most valuable company in the world? Not Debeers with the diamond mines or a gold mining company with gold at $1400+ an ounce, or an oil company with $3+ almost $4 gas. A company with no real resources is the 2nd most valuable. Seriously....what do they own? What resources back their value? Yes they have IP fine, but their IP is not worth $300 billion. So what do they do when another OS is launched based on linux or some new system that is better? Or maybe if android cleans up, or Creative puts together a real mp3 player. Seriously how does anyone justify less than 5% of the computer market is worth $300 billion ( with no dividends not less); what about the other 95%. What a joke, I will not feel bad for one person who loses their money on this. Further, since they are doing so well now maybe they can finally be investigated for those violations of the antitrust law, ie tying their os to their hardware among the other anticompetitive behaviors they engage in. That would be nice too.

[Ourstorian]

04:13 PM on 01/04/2011

Clueless best describes your comment. Apple is not an IP. That's your first mistake. The rest of the drivel you are trying to pass off as tech market analysis is not even worthy of rebuttal.

[jasev01]

10:40 AM on 01/05/2011

so here is the funny part, you describe me as clueless but you clearly have no idea what IP even mean in this context hence making yourself the clueless one.  Let me explain, IP is intelectual property, copyrights, trademarks and most importantly in this context patents ( arguably with trademark particularly the "I" monopoly they are trying to build, like the "MC" monopoly of McDonalds) Without these apple have 0 value.  If they lost patent protection and trademark protection, 1000s of companies especially in China would start making Ipods and I phones and Ipad exactly the same but cheaper, and legally and shipping them to the the world market.  IP, or IP laws is that stops that and along with goodwill is one of Apple's most valuable assets.  However its not $300billion valuable.

I sugget next time you try to post you know what you are talking about, rather than going in to a fanboi frenzy.

[kilgary]

02:22 AM on 01/05/2011

Android will outsell iPhone; but Google gave away the software for free. They expect to break even on software development costs (by advertising to Android users) by 2011. Apple's business model is different. They turn a profit on every phone sold, every app sold, and every iAd viewed. They are sitting on $30 billion in cash. So, hopefully, they will soon either gobble up other tech companies that hold technology patents that would bolster Apple's products or, gasp, begin paying dividends to investors. The day Apple pays a dividend is the day the stock hits $400.

[jasev01]

10:43 AM on 01/05/2011

I still think it will bust.  Specifically when someone starts enforcing the antitrust laws, and forcing them to stop bundling their software and hardware, and to compete fairly rather than hiding behind the we doen't control enough of the market share argument. That will start to unravel.

[g4dualie]

11:50 AM on 01/04/2011

A joke, really?

IBM, HP, and Oracle makes and sells severs to corporate, as does HP and Oracle, so you must be a big fan of theirs, huh? What're you IT?

Apple has never had a real presence in enterprise and that's a good thing for the world.

HP sold what, maybe a million servers last year? Apple sold 14-million phones in the last 60-days. 14-mllion phones, each bringing in $300 in profit. You do the math and tell me if selling phones is a joke.

Apple is an American company and have ingeniously positioned themselves to become the most valuable company in our nations history. An oil company stands in their way, but I'll admit without oil there would be no Apple, Inc., but without Apple, life would be pretty dull for everyone, including you.

The bottom line is, you need Apple. You need them to indulge your inner desire to hate something or someone. You and all the other commentors on these boards have chose a soft targetto hate. It's fashionable to hate Apple, your parents did, and they've passed the torch on to you.

Thirty-years ago I got involved with Apple and haven't looked back. I bought shares at $15 and have since retired to a good life. I picked a winner! I bet the farm on an American company and they did not disappoint.

The money is a joke and we're laughing all the way to the bank.

Go APPL!

[badgerdude]

06:41 PM on 01/04/2011

I enjoy Apple products immensely and have spent over $6000 in the last three months upgrading to everything Apple. However, it's hard to call Apple an American company, not once, but twice! Apple products are designed and marketed in Cupertino, but manufactured in far off lands.

[g4dualie]

07:56 PM on 01/04/2011

Who cares where the stuff is manufactured? Their leadership and its headquarters have been on US soil since 1976, longer than many of you have been alive.

[studmoose]

10:53 AM on 01/04/2011

They would be bigger if they opened up to all cell phone carriers, such as TMobile, Sprint & Verizon.

I have a TMobile Family plan and I'm not buying any product that will force a switch or require a second subscription, period. For family plans, TMobile is the cheapest by far. I would be severely penalized if I switched carriers, just in the monthly charges for the others alone - not including a switching charge, if any.

[kilgary]

02:15 AM on 01/05/2011

Many people have jailbroken their iPhones to work on T-Mobile. It has been ruled legal to do so (to switch carriers - not to pirate apps). T-Mobile is the only other service in the US the iPhone would work on as it uses the same radio technology as AT

[BlueDog1]

10:19 AM on 01/04/2011

A joke......................2 percent of the corporate embedded base of PC's in the world, 2 percent of the embedded desk top software, zero percent server OPS in world, Zero percent server hardware, zero percent of network infrastructure equipment, ect, etc.

We make phones...........................

[JohnUSA]

11:23 AM on 01/04/2011

Then compare them to Nokia

[PhillyKing]

12:49 PM on 01/04/2011

Nokia makes corporate firewalls and routers

[Ourstorian]

04:15 PM on 01/04/2011

They make money ... And they do it selling a variety of products besides phones. That's why they're the number two corporation in the world in terms of market capitalization.

[kilgary]

10:05 AM on 01/04/2011

Apple saved my and my wife's retirement funds. We lost almost 40% during the crash of 2006; but were back to our highs by 2008 - all because about 1/4 of our holdings was Apple. Since then, 100% of my retirement account is in Apple. If it ever drops more than 10% from it's high, I'm on auto-sell. Until then, I'm counting on Mr. Jobs to pad our nest egg.

[jgeurian21]

12:31 PM on 01/04/2011

What happens if Jobs dies? Do you really think it is smart investing to key your nest egg off a single person who is in bad health? The day Jobs dies Apple stock tanks. It has happened before.

[John Kramarz]

03:42 PM on 01/04/2011

" The day Jobs dies Apple stock tanks. It has happened before."

OMG! Steve Jobs died before?
Really, if you think a company like this is driven by ONE person, you shouldn't invest in it anyway.

[jasev01]

12:41 PM on 01/04/2011

what assets is your net egg backed by?  I'd suggest your diversify; 100% of anything is not not good, especially when its backed by nothing and when it doesn't pay dividends.