Apple achieved a remarkable milestone on Friday as its stock value reached $3 trillion, a historic achievement unmatched by any other company. This accomplishment is part of the larger surge in Big Tech stocks, which has propelled the Nasdaq to its strongest first-half performance in four decades. The price per share of Apple rose by over 2% on Friday, reaching a record $193.97. With a total of 15.7 billion shares outstanding, this significant increase pushed Apple to its unprecedented market value.
Apple had previously touched the $3 trillion mark during intraday trading on January 3, 2022, but failed to close at that level. However, on Thursday, the company’s stock closed at a record high for the third consecutive day, albeit with a modest 0.2% increase. Apple easily surpassed the required threshold of $190.73 to breach the $3 trillion mark when the market opened on Friday.
The extraordinary valuation of this tech giant follows its recent risky launch of the Apple Vision Pro, an augmented reality device. Despite facing a slump in sales and profits, Apple’s stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings report in May, along with positive reviews from tech journalists who had a sneak peek at the Vision Pro, have contributed to its sky-high market value. It’s worth noting that the Vision Pro is entering a relatively new market with limited consumer adoption, and it carries a hefty price tag of $3,499, requiring users to stay connected to a battery pack the size of an iPhone.
Apple’s stock (AAPL) has surged by an impressive 49% this year, largely driven by the growing popularity of AI technology. The broader surge in Big Tech stocks has seen Nvidia (NVDA) leading the S&P 500 with a remarkable 190% jump, followed by Meta (META) with a 138% increase. The Nasdaq, as a whole, experienced a substantial 31.7% growth in the first half of the year, marking its most significant first-half percentage gain since 1983.
This year’s success in the stock market stands in stark contrast to Apple’s performance in 2022 when its market capitalization fell below $2 trillion for the first time since early 2021. As the first half of 2023 drew to a close, Wall Street ended on a positive note, with the tech rally driving the markets higher both for the month and the second quarter of the year.
