Apple CEO Tim Cook, left, and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.
Reuters
Microsoft ended Friday’s US trading session as the most valuable publicly traded company, surpassing Apple after briefly outperforming the iPhone maker during intraday trading on Thursday.
Microsoft shares climbed more than 3% for the week, bringing the company’s market capitalization to $2.89 trillion, while Apple shares fell more than 3%, reducing their valuation to $2.87 trillion.
Redburn Atlantic Equities analyst James Cordwell downgraded Apple from buy to neutral on Wednesday, citing “little room for upside over the next few years” in iPhone growth and an “expected weak March quarter.”
Apple said Thursday that former Vice President Al Gore will step down from the company’s board next month after serving as a director since 2003.
Meanwhile, Microsoft gained confidence on Thursday after discussing its AI capabilities with developers at an event in San Francisco. Analysts at Piper Sandler told clients in a note that they were “encouraged by the momentum around cutting-edge AI products,” noting that traffic to GitHub’s website accelerated for three consecutive months year-over-year. Analysts have the equivalent of a buy rating on Microsoft shares.
Apple has been the most valuable public company for more than a year, after brief periods when Saudi Aramco and Microsoft held the distinction.
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