Microsoft, World’s Most Valuable Company, Jumps Apple

Microsoft, World’s Most Valuable Company, Jumps Apple

After Apple missed earnings expectations on Thursday, Microsoft became the world’s most valuable publicly-traded company on Friday, surpassing Apple in market value.

Apple stood at about $2.46 trillion at market close, while Microsoft reached nearly $2.49 trillion.

As a result of supply chain constraints, Apple’s fiscal fourth-quarter revenue missed Wall Street expectations. Despite Apple CEO Tim Cook’s estimates of a $6 billion revenue shortfall, the company expects worse supply chain issues in the December quarter.

Despite a 47% year-over-year increase in iPhone sales, sales fell short of analyst expectations. Sales of the iPhone 13 were only reported during the company’s fourth quarter.

On Tuesday afternoon, Microsoft also acknowledged supply constraints as it reported fiscal first-quarter earnings. However, the company issued a forecast for personal computers that easily exceeded expectations.

On the earnings call, Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood described Q2 as a strong demand quarter that will be constrained by supply. Nonetheless, she said, the market is still growing.

Revenue in Microsoft’s first fiscal quarter grew 22 percent year over year, beating expectations.

The first company to