Microsoft overtakes Apple as world’s most valuable company
Bill Gates-led Microsoft has snatched the title of being the most valuable company in the world overtaking fellow technology major Apple. This happened due to the huge fall in the shares of iPhone. Apple’s sale is getting hit due to supply chain issue. This dented the company’s hopes on Wall Street.
According to equity analysts, Apple’s shares have fallen 3.6 percent to $147. This leaves its market cap at $2.41 trillion. While Microsoft’s shares climbed 0.7 percent to $326. This has increased the market cap to $2.46 trillion.
Although Apple earned about a third of its revenue from emerging markets in FY21, and its business in India and Vietnam has doubled. According to the company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Tim Cook, the US company generated 29 percent year-on-year revenue of $83.4 billion in the fourth quarter ended September 25, 2021. Its net income for the quarter was $ 20.55 billion, compared to $ 12.67 billion in the same quarter a year ago. The company’s total net sales for the fiscal year ended September 2021 stood at $365.8 billion.
Cook said, “And we set quarterly records in every geographic region with strong double-digit growth across all regions. During FY21, we generated nearly one-third of our revenue from emerging markets and doubled our business in India and Vietnam”
According to Counterpoint Research, Apple was the largest growing brand in India in the September 2021 quarter with a year-on-year growth of 212 per cent and the highest 44 per cent share in the premium smartphone (above Rs 30,000) market.
Meanwhile, Facebook has also given its results. In Australia, Facebook reported earnings of $29 billion 35 percent (on-year) in third-quarter revenue and $28.3 billion in ad revenue. The social network reported net income of $9.1 billion, up 17 percent from the same quarter last year. Facebook shares have gained 1.9 percent after third-quarter earnings.
The company, while announcing its third quarter (July-September period) results, said that around 2.8 billion people are using at least one of its apps on a daily basis, and 3.6 billion people at least on a monthly basis in September use one app.
