In a recent market shakeup, Microsoft has emerged as the new leader in terms of market capitalization, a position traditionally dominated by Apple. This transition became evident during intraday trading on Thursday and was further solidified by the close of Friday's U.S. trading session.
Microsoft's remarkable performance saw its shares surging over 3% throughout the week, pushing the company's market capitalization to an impressive $2.89 trillion. In contrast, Apple experienced a more than 3% decline in its stock price, leading to a decrease in its overall valuation to $2.87 trillion.
This shift in fortunes for Apple coincided with a downgrade from Redburn Atlantic Equities analyst James Cordwell on Wednesday. Cordwell revised his stance on the tech giant from a "buy" to a "neutral" rating, citing concerns about Apple's limited iPhone growth potential in the coming years and anticipating underwhelming performance in the upcoming March quarter.
Adding to Apple's challenges, former Vice President Al Gore announced his retirement from the company's board next month. Gore had been a director at Apple since 2003.
Meanwhile, Microsoft received a vote of confidence on Thursday as it showcased its artificial intelligence capabilities at an event in San Francisco. Piper Sandler analysts expressed optimism about Microsoft's mature AI products, highlighting the positive trend in GitHub website traffic, which has seen steady growth for three consecutive months. Analysts have responded by assigning Microsoft shares an equivalent of a "buy" rating, signaling a positive outlook on the company's future performance.
For over a year, Apple has consistently held the title of the most valuable publicly traded company, briefly conceding it to entities like Saudi Aramco and Microsoft. However, Microsoft's recent surge underscores a potential shift in the dynamics of the market.