Is Apple about to become the world’s first trillion-dollar company?
An analyst has predicted that Apple is about to hit the trillion-dollar mark with the launch of its upcoming iPhone 8 smartphone.
In his report, which was obtained by MacRumours, Wall Street analyst Brian White claimed that the iPhone 8 cycle could help Apple’s stocks reach a $202 price target within 12 months. If that happens, Apple will be the first company in the world to be valued at £1-billion dollars (around £777-billion).
Apple’s current market capitalisation is $737-billion (around £575-billion).
That’s a lot of pressure on the iPhone 8, which is expected to launch mid-September this year – especially, as White points out, since Apple’s stock value has dropped around 9% after reaching an all-time high of $156.10 (£121) in May.
But White thinks this dip is a prime buying opportunity for investors as the company prepares to launch its next hotly-anticipated flagship.
He’s not the only one who thinks so, either. In fact, RBC Capital Markets analyst Amit Daryanan first predicted Apple’s trillion-dollar status back in May. Daryana cited the iPhone 8 and Apple’s upgrade cycle as being the likely catalysts for Apple tipping the trillion-dollar mark, and put a time-scale of 12 to 18 months for the tech giant to win the race.
It wouldn’t be a race without a competitor, however, and billion-pound hedge fund founder Scott Galloway has already placed his bets on Amazon getting there first.
Galloway told Re/code that this is no commentary on Apple. He said that Amazon captures the £90 to 98% of purchases that customers find tedious in a physical retail space, leaving only a small percentage of luxury shops and brands that will survive on the streets.
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Do you think it’s likely Apple will tip the trillion-dollar mark? Let us know in the comments.