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Apple's market cap tops $600 billion

Apple's market capitalization crossed the $600 billion mark earlier today, setting a record for the company and nearing that of one of its biggest rivals.

Shares of the company's stock reached $644 in intraday trading. Per Dow Jones, the stock needs to close above $643.52 to reach the magic $600 billion number.

Market capitalization is defined as the value of shares times the number of shares outstanding. Apple passed previous market cap champ Exxon on that metric last year, and is now nearing the $619 billion market cap record set by rival Microsoft on December 30, 1999. … Read more

Analyst downgrades Apple stock over market concerns, high expectations

Well, this is different: Apple's stock, which has been soaring over the last several years, has been downgraded from Buy to Neutral by BTIG Research analyst Walter Piecyk.

Piecyk has now pitted himself against countless analysts who believe Apple's shares will continue to soar. And although he thinks Apple will post a strong fiscal second quarter, he thinks the company is facing three major issues that could stunt its growth: changes afoot in the post-paid wireless industry, the possibility of an iPhone price cut, and the prospect of Apple not launching a "revolutionary product into the market&… Read more

Bragging rights go to Apple as per-share price now tops Google

If you're keeping score -- and who doesn't these days? -- it now costs more to buy a share of Apple than to purchase a share of Google.

To be sure, this is more about bragging rights than anything else as the market capitalization is the truer indicator of value, and on that score Apple long ago surpassed Google's market cap. In fact, Apple is actually worth three times as much as Google.

Apple, however, still has a long way to go before its per-share price can compare with Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, which is currently … Read more

JOBS Act: 5 things to look forward to (and 5 to dread)

Today, President Obama passes the JOBS (Jumpstart Our Business Startups) Act, a collection of laws that relaxes regulations on capital raising for startup companies and gives all companies more flexibility in how and when they go public.

It's the "crowdfunding" provisions of the JOBS Act that are getting the most attention, and for good reason. The JOBS Act will allow startups, from taco trucks to mobile apps builders, to solicit the general public for investment -- an activity that was previously illegal. It will allow any individual to invest in these advertised startups as well. The hope … Read more

Facebook to put secondary-market trading on ice

Facebook hasn't gone public yet, but investors have been trading the social network's shares for years. That may soon change.

Facebook has instructed secondary-market organizations, like SharesPost and SecondMarket, to stop trading its shares this week, Bloomberg reports. The move is designed to help Facebook determine who its shareholders are and to establish a proper valuation leading up to its initial public offering, Bloomberg's sources said.

Facebook filed for its IPO in February. The company hopes to raise $5 billion in the offering on a valuation that could soar past $100 billion. If that happens, it would … Read more

Apple stock finishes above $600 for first time

For a third straight day, shares of Apple rallied toward $600--and this time they finished the day above the iconic mark for the first time in the company's history.

At the close of trading on Monday, shares of Apple stood at $601.10, up 2.65 percent in the aftermath of the company's surprise announcement earlier in the day that it would use some of its $100 billion in cash to pay out a quarterly dividend of $2.65 per share sometime in the fourth quarter of its fiscal 2012, which begins on July 1.

Last week Apple … Read more

Apple ready to issue cash dividend to stockholders?

Apple will hold a conference call tomorrow morning to discuss its nearly $100 billion cash balance, the company announced this afternoon, a sign the company may be getting ready to give some money back to its stockholders.

The company, which hasn't paid a regular cash dividend since 1995, has $97.6 billion of cash and liquid assets and carries no debt on its books, according to a January filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

In a note to investors last month posted by Fortune, UBS said that Apple's management has been "soliciting opinions of … Read more

Apple stock to hit $600 today? Tomorrow? Friday?

Let the guessing game begin.

On December 23, 2011, Apple shares closed the day trading at $403.33. Less than two months later, this past February 13, the shares finished at $502.60. If you thought that was a steep climb, consider this: the company's stock price reached $594.72 earlier today, putting it within easy distance of $600.

With Apple's latest iPad going on sale in a couple of days, another catalyst for the latest move came from Morgan Stanley. Analyst Katy Huberty lifted her target to $720 from $515. She also offered the bull case scenario … Read more

Pandora's longtime VP to step down

One of the top female executives in Silicon Valley is stepping down.

Jessica Steel, Pandora's executive vice president of Business and Corporate Development, is wrapping up her nearly eight-year tenure at the company, according to tech news site The Next Web.

Steel's role at the Internet radio giant was to lead the company's business development and work on strategic partnerships with device manufacturers, car companies, and more.

"The car is one of the most popular venues for radio listening and incorporating Pandora into the native environment of automobile dashboards makes listening to personalized Internet radio as … Read more