Apple stock makes it the most valuable company ever
Apple stock propelled the company's value to $621 billion Monday, beating the record previously set by Microsoft. Apple stock has hit new highs recently due to buzz about the potential iPhone 5 and cheaper iPad.
People wait on a street in front of an Apple store as they await sales of the new iPad in the Apple store in Munich in this March 2012 file photo. Apple became the most valuable company in history Monday, surpassing a record set a decade ago by Microsoft.
Micheala Rehle/Reuters/File
New York
Apple is the world's most valuable company, ever.
On Monday, its surging stock propelled the company's value to $621 billion, beating the record for market capitalization set by Microsoft Corp. in the heady days of the Internet boom.
Apple's stock has hit new highs recently because of optimism around what is believed to be the impending launch of the iPhone 5, and possibly a smaller, cheaper iPad.
Apple Inc. has been the world's most valuable company since the end of last year. It's now worth 53 percent more than No. 2 Exxon Mobil Corp.
The comparison to Microsoft does not take inflation into account. In inflation-adjusted dollars, the software giant was worth about $850 billion on Dec. 30, 1999. Microsoft is now worth $257 billion.