MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Apple, first company to reach a market value of US$ 3 trillion

The iPhone remains the biggest sales driver but services business grew 25,6% year-over-year, with an 18 billion dollars revenue jump in the fourth quarter

Apple Inc. reached a market value of US$ 3 trillion (twelve zeroes) during intraday trading on Monday, when its share price hit US$ 182,86. Although the milestone is mainly symbolic, (Wednesday shares were down to US$ 175) it shows investors remain bullish on Apple stock.

In effect the company grew in all of its product categories in the fourth quarter earnings while revenue was up 29%.

The iPhone remains the biggest sales driver but services business grew 25,6% year-over-year, with an 18 billion dollars revenue jump in the fourth quarter, and market expectations of further expansion.

In December Morgan Stanley’s Katy Huberty raised the firm’s price target on Apple from US$164 to US$200, and maintained the equivalent of a buy rating, arguing that new products like virtual reality and augmented reality headsets aren’t yet included into the share price.

Huberty also said she expects Apple’s App Store revenue to outperform Morgan Stanley’s forecasts for the quarter and for Apple to ship 83 million units during the December quarter, 3 million more than anticipated.

Apple sold 27 million pairs of its newest AirPods model over the holidays, driving 20% year-over-year growth for Apple’s wearable business during the quarter, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of TFI Asset Management Limited said.

August 2018, Apple became the first US company ever to be worth one trillion dollars, an achievement that took 42 years.