Apple becomes top #1 company
Apple stock price first reached the top spot in August 2011. A brief hiatus occurred from January to June 2024 (when Microsoft briefly surpassed it). Peak Total Value: Approximately 12 years, from 2025 to August.
Apple first became the most valuable publicly traded company in the United States in August 2011, surpassing ExxonMobil. Since then, Apple has largely held the title, with the exception of a brief period from January to June 2024, when Microsoft regained the top spot.
From August 2011 to December 2023, Apple’s dominance lasted approximately 12.4 years. Excluding Microsoft’s brief six-month lead in early 2024, Apple has maintained the top spot for approximately 12 consecutive years.
Longest Reign at the #1 position
Apple holds the title of the most valuable publicly traded company in the history of the US stock market. Apple holds the record for the longest consecutive tenure as the most valuable public company in the United States, holding the top spot for approximately 13 years. No other company in modern U.S. stock market history can match this streak.
Most Valuable US Companies in history
Here is the summary of the Most Valuable Companies in U.S. Stock Market History by Period:
- 1960s to 1980s: IBM
- 1995-1999: ExxonMobil/Coca-Cola
- 2000: ExxonMobil
- 2001-2004: Microsoft
- 2005-2010: ExxonMobil
- 2011-2023: Apple
- 2024 (Year-End): Apple
- 2025 (August): Nvidia
Apple stock price performance Different from Peers
Apple’s stock price has, for the most part, rarely moved in sync with its peers in the tech sector, a unique characteristic.
However, Apple’s stock price has mostly fallen 16% to 20% from its peak at the beginning of the year through August 2025, making it the worst-performing large-cap tech stock besides Apple.
While this phenomenon isn’t unprecedented in Apple’s history, it is one of the most severe, perhaps second only to the mid-1990s, when the company nearly went bankrupt and forced Steve Jobs to bow to Microsoft and request Bill Gates to inject capital into Apple to save the company.
This also marks the longest period of time since Apple was delisted from the top of the market capitalization rankings, breaking the previous 12-year record.
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