Apple became the first company to reach the USD 3 trillion mark. Next stop, its first electric car?

On 3 January, Apple became the first publicly-traded company to hit the USD 3 trillion (RM12.5 trillion) mark in market value during the first day of trading in 2022. However, it dipped just below the mark at USD 2.99 trillion then the stock trading session ended.

The company’s shares hit an intraday record high of USD 182.88 (RM765.08), putting Apple’s market value just above USD 3 trillion. The stock ended the session up 2.5% at USD 182.01 (RM761.44), with Apple’s market capitalisation at USD 2.99 trillion.

Now the “world’s most valuable company”, it previously shared the USD 2 trillion club with Microsoft. Alphabet, Amazon and Tesla and Saudi Arabian Oil all have market values above USD 1 trillion.

In August 2018, Apple became the first American company ever to be worth USD 1 trillion. It went past USD 2 trillion in 2020.

“The market is rewarding companies that have strong fundamentals and balance sheets, and the companies that are hitting these sort of huge market caps have proven they are strong businesses and not speculation,” said Scott Wren, senior global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.

Apple has sharply increased its revenue by reducing its reliance on the iPhone to about 52% of total revenue in fiscal 2021 from over 60% in 2018—which satisfied investors who were worried that the company relied too much on the iPhone. Instead, Apple also focused on services like video streaming and music.

Their focus on their other services might have additionally set them apart from other phone companies like Samsung and Xiaomi. According to Counterpoint Research, Xiaomi and Samsung became the top two smartphone brands in terms of sales in June 2021, beating out Apple. 

Apple also has a great advantage by being a Big Tech company. The world is rapidly embracing technologies like 5G, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence. The company has also been expected to launch its own electric vehicle “within the next few years” according to investors—aiming to beat Tesla at its own game.

[ SOURCE, IMAGE SOURCE ]

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