AAPL leads in market cap

Apple is so far at the forefront of 2009's S&P 500 market cap ratings, figures show. Market cap is a relative reflection of company value, in terms of stock price multiplied by the number of outstanding shares; as of April 3rd the company's cap had grown by approximately $27.425 billion, easily surpassing that of IBM, which nevertheless managed a cap increase of $24.081 billion. Another notable tech company on the list is Google, which placed in fourth with $19.719 billion.

The growth rate of Apple stock is rated at 35.9 percent, reflecting a shift in price from $85.35 to $115.99. While greater than that of some companies, the growth is still towards the low end of high performers, such as Sun at 122.25 percent. The furthest fall in terms of percentage is represented by Citigroup, which lost 57.53 percent of its stock value; on a strictly monetary basis however, ExxonMobil's cap dropped a colossal $57.979 billion, even as its stock slipped by only 11.76 percent.

by MacNN Staff