RaduTyrsina
News Team
Believe it or not, but Apple is now quickly approaching a mind-blowing trillion-dollar market cap. The company's shares have reached $133 each, thus propelling its market capitalization to just under $775 billion, which is a number two times larger than second-largest publicly traded U.S. company Exxon Mobil.
But this isn't the end of it. Last week, Goldman Sachs increased its view to $145 a share last week, which would make the market cap worth $845bn. The highest target, at $165, comes from First Shanghai Securities, which would see Apple’s market valuation rise to $960bn.
James Gautrey at Schroders said the following regarding Apple's ascension towards a $1 trillion market cap:
"It’s possible in the next couple of years, and the reason I think it has this potential is really because the multiple investors are willing to pay for [Apple] is expanding. This was always viewed as a consumer technology, boom-and-bust cycle type of company, like the Motorolas, Nintendos, Nokias. Right now, the innovation Apple is coming out with — payments, healthcare, Beats [headphones] — those three parts for the consumer are really starting to lock people in.”
The main factors for the rapid share increase seem to be accelerating iPhone sales, rising earnings forecasts and the largest buyback and dividend programme in the US. Add to this rumors related to a potential electric car and that's how Apple's shares have propelled up 19 per cent this year, thus adding more than $110bn to Apple’s market valuation.
Source: Apple, FT