The iPhone maker, which has a current market cap of $2.96tn, will set a new record by becoming the first company to hit the milestone if its shares close at $182.86.
Apple is not far from hitting a $3 trillion market value, needing its shares to gain a little more than $1 to become the first company ever to reach the spectacular milestone it has flirted with over the past few weeks.
The technology giant’s stock climbed 0.4 per cent to $180.96 before the opening bell in New York on Tuesday, with its market cap standing at $2.96tn. It needs a share price of $182.86 to reach the mark, based on its outstanding shares.
California-based Apple’s stock rose as high as $182.13 earlier this month.
Apple shares have gained in the past four trading sessions, up 6.2 per cent during that run and ending Monday at a record. Apple shares declined on Tuesday, with the iPhone maker slipping 0.5 per cent after the four-day rally.
“It’s now one of the more richly valued companies in the market, which shows the dominance of US technology in the world and how confident investors are that it will remain in Apple’s hands. It seems like the stock has priced in every possible good outcome,” Brian Frank, a portfolio manager at Frank Capital, had said.
Apple began seriously aiming to breach the $3tn mark earlier this month when its market value hit $2.94tn on December 11. It dipped to $2.81tn a week later then rose again to $2.89tn at the end of last week.
Microsoft is the only other company in the $2tn club, but is still a distant second.
Aside from Apple and Microsoft, the only other trillion-dollar companies in the world as of Tuesday are Google, oil producer Saudi Aramco, Amazon and electric vehicle maker Tesla, CompaniesMarketCap data show. Facebook owner Meta Platforms, the world’s biggest social media network, has a market value of $962bn.
The $3tn achievement would cap a very strong year for Apple — even stretching back to 2020. Year-to-date, its stock has jumped 36 per cent and has surged more than 200 per cent ever since Covid-19 forced the world into lockdowns in March last year.
The company was one of the few that did well during the pandemic, which highlighted the need for work, education, entertainment and staying connected remotely.
It reported a 62.2 per cent annual jump in its fiscal fourth-quarter net profit on the back of record revenue, which rose 29 per cent year-on-year to $83.4bn.
Apple strengthened its line-up over the past two years with two new iPhones, this year’s iteration of which was well received because of its better cameras. It also released Mac computers and iPads using its new M1 processor, which has more power and is part of a major transition into using chips made in-house.
In October, New York-based management consulting firm Interbrand named Apple the best global brand for the ninth year in a row.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Finance World staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)