As the first company in history to pass the $700, $800, and $900 billion marks, Apple has long looked set to become the world’s first ever $1 trillion company. But Amazon is rapidly closing in on it.
This week, Amazon’s stock market value reached $900 billion for the first time. That puts it within spitting distance of the Cupertino tech giant’s current $935 billion. In 2018, Apple’s shares have risen 12 percent, while Amazon’s have shot up dramatically to the tune of 57 percent.
Amazon’s latest boost, unsurprisingly, was Prime Day. This brought it more than $100 million worth of products. As a result of Prime Day, Amazon’s stock market value briefly hit $902 billion, before settling back down again.
Since launching on the Nasdaq in 1997 — the same year Steve Jobs took the mantle of CEO upon his return to Apple — Amazon’s stock has increased a massive 123,000 percent.
The next big test for both companies will be their quarterly earnings, due to be revealed later this month. Amazon will reports its earnings on July 26, followed in hot pursuit by Apple on July 31.
Photo: Reuters
The race to $1 trillion
A report published earlier this year suggested that Amazon could beat Apple to the $1 trillion mark by a single week. At the time, Apple’s market cap was $893 billion and Amazon’s was $752 billion. That report suggested that the date for this milestone would be sometime in late August.
Both companies have the advantage of not being reliant on one revenue source. Amazon has its retail business and cloud services, and has also expanded into areas like original programming. Apple has also increasing pushed its Services division, and continues to sell plenty of hardware.
Unlike the past, analysts like Above Avalon‘s Neil Cybart have argued, Apple’s share price no longer relies wholly on the iPhone.
For more details on the race to hit a $1 trillion valuation, I’d recommend NYU Stern marketing professor Scott Galloway’s immensely readable 
Source: Reuters
