Microsoft surpasses $3 trillion market cap, securing second place to Apple

Microsoft surpassed $3 trillion stock market value on Wednesday. The company has achieved this milestone for the first time in its 48-year history and becomes the world’s second company, in terms of market capitalization, after Apple.

Since the beginning of the year, Microsoft and Apple shares have been competing to be the most capitalized stock on Wall Street.

Microsoft’s market value surpassed $3 trillion as its shares reached a record high of $405.63, up 1.7%. But it closed at $402.56 later on, barely missing the $403.65 level that would have kept its valuation over $3 trillion at $2.99 trillion.

LSEG data shows that Apple’s market worth is $3 trillion, as its shares pared previous advances and finished down 0.35% at $194.50.

Ownership structure of Microsoft?

The ownership structure of Microsoft (MSFT) stock is a mix of institutional, retail and individual investors. Approximately 42.03% of the company’s stock is owned by Institutional Investors, 7.73% is owned by Insiders and 50.25% is owned by Public Companies and Individual Investors.

The software giant is widely regarded as a frontrunner in the race for market dominance in the rollout of generative artificial intelligence (AI), backed by its investment in ChatGPT maker OpenAI. Other tech heavyweights, such as Google owner Alphabet, Amazon, Oracle, and Facebook owner Meta Platforms are also in the race.

Microsoft has released updated versions of its popular productivity software products and its Bing search engine, which is anticipated to more effectively rival Google’s market-dominating search service, using OpenAI’s technology.

In contrast, Apple is seeing a decline in the market for its iPhones, especially in China, where it is boosting sales by providing customers with frequent discounts despite strong competition from domestic rivals like Huawei Technologies.

Based on LSEG data, the 54 analysts that cover Microsoft’s stock have a median price target of $425, which is higher than their previous month’s price goal of $415. They also suggest “buy” on average.

Microsoft’s stock rose 7% this year and roughly 57% in 2023, thanks to excitement in AI. Apple’s stock returned 48% in the previous year and is up roughly 1% so far this year.

In the upcoming weeks, Wall Street’s drive to all-time highs will be tested when megacap U.S. technology companies start to release their earnings.