Microsoft has overtaken Apple to become the world’s most valuable publicly traded company at the end of Friday’s U.S. trading session. This shift occurred after Microsoft briefly surpassed Apple in intraday trading on Thursday.
Microsoft’s shares rose by more than 3% for the week, resulting in a market capitalization of $2.89 trillion. In contrast, Apple’s stock declined by over 3%, lowering its valuation to $2.87 trillion.
On Wednesday, Redburn Atlantic Equities analyst James Cordwell downgraded Apple from buy to neutral, citing limited potential for upside in iPhone growth over the next few years and an anticipated underwhelming March quarter.
Former Vice President Al Gore is set to retire from Apple’s board next month, having served as a director since 2003.
Microsoft received a vote of confidence on Thursday after showcasing its artificial intelligence capabilities to developers at an event in San Francisco. Piper Sandler analysts expressed encouragement about the momentum surrounding Microsoft’s most mature AI products and noted a three-month consecutive acceleration in GitHub website traffic year over year. The analysts provided the equivalent of a buy rating for Microsoft shares.
Apple had held the title of the most valuable public company for over a year, with brief periods of interruption by Saudi Aramco and Microsoft.
