Stock surge pushes Apple past trillion-dollar mark
Strong sales in latest financial quarter help company set new record for profitability
Apple has become the first US company in history to be valued at $1trn (£770bn) as the company’s share prices hit a record high.
The California-based tech firm has seen its stock values rise by 9% since Tuesday to hit $207.39 (£159.37) yesterday, Sky News reports.
The surge followed Apple’s announcement of its sales results for the third quarter, which “exceeded Wall Street’s expectations”.
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The company made profits of $11.5bn (£8.8bn) and revenues of $53.3bn (£40.6bn) in the three months until 30 June. This marked a year-on-year 32% increase in profits and a 17% rise in revenue.
Much of the company’s recent success can be attributed to the iPhone, according to the BBC. The broadcaster reports that Apple’s shares have soared by 1,100% since the smartphone launched in 2007.
The development of the iPhone has been overseen by CEO Tim Cook, who took over after Apple's influential co-founder Steve Jobs died in 2011. At that time, the company was valued at $624bn (£480bn).
Although Apple has cemented its position as the highest-valued US-based company, it remains to be seen whether the tech giant can also take the top spot in the world rankings.
In 2007, Chinese government-controlled petrol giant PetroChina was listed as the world’s first firm to top the $1trn mark, but The Guardian says its “valuation is considered unreliable because only 2% of the company was released for public trading”.
Saudi Arabian oil firm Saudi Aramco could end up with a valuation of up to $2trn (£1.54trn) if plans go ahead to float the company on the stock market, the newspaper adds.
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