Market capitalization

An orgy of last-minute AAPL trades

Someone sold 6 million shares at $348.24 as Apple put the NASDAQ-100 rebalance behind it

Apple investors had been dreading Friday's close since early April, when NASDAQ announced that starting May 2, Apple's share of the NASDAQ-100, one of the world's most heavily traded stock indexes, would be reduced from 20.5% to 12.3%.

All 100 stocks in the index were to be affected by the so-called Special Rebalance, but none as much MORE

Jobs' net is bigger than Ballmer's

For the first time in decades, Apple's net income has overtaken Microsoft's

One by one, the bragging rights are going Steve Jobs' way.

In May 2010, Apple's (AAPL) market cap passed Microsoft's (MSFT).
In October, Apple overtook Microsoft in total revenue.
On Thursday, when Microsoft reported its earnings for the March quarter, Steve Ballmer lost what edge he still had. Microsoft's net income for calendar Q1 2011 was $5.23 billion. Apple's was $5.99 billion.

Also MORE

Apple: Barron's most-respected, again

For the second year in a row, Steve Jobs' company tops the money manager's list

This is not a huge surprise.

After all, Barron's annual list of the world's most respected companies is drawn from a survey of professional money managers. And money managers control 70% of Apple's (AAPL) shares, and thus were largely responsible for the long 2010 rally that made Apple the world's most valuable tech company.

Still, as Vito Racanelli MORE

Apple falls 9.7% in Frankfurt

Recovers to close 6.1% below Monday's opening. A preview of tomorrow's trading?

The chart at right says it all. Apple was sailing along at around 262.75 Euros ($349.35) when Apple (AAPL) released Steve Jobs' letter to the staff announcing his latest medical leave.

The stock went into freefall. In the space of 17 minutes, it plummeted €23.25 (8.8%). Within an hour, it had bottomed out at €237.25, a drop of 9.7% that MORE

Apple's market cap tops $300 billion

Giving ExxonMobil a run for its money in the race to be the world's most valuable company

In a broad 2011 rally that pushed the Dow up nearly a point in mid-morning trading Monday, Apple (AAPL) popped more than $7 (2.25%) to hit new record intraday highs -- and to cross a major psychological barrier.

The company's market capitalization -- its stock price times the number of shares outstanding -- is now MORE

Apple closes above $320 per share

Apple (AAPL), which has been trailing the market recently, reversed the trend on Monday and closed up $2.71 (0.85%) in a down market to set a new all-time intraday high of $322.33 and a new high closing price: $320.15.

A few useful stats courtesy of the Wall Street Journal:

Jobs' is now bigger than Ballmer's

Four years ago, Microsoft (MSFT) pulled in nearly $6 billion more in sales than Apple (AAPL). Now Apple's is total revenue is $4.1 billion bigger than Microsoft's.

Meanwhile, Apple's market cap, which overtook Microsoft's in May, continues to outpace Redmond's. The total value of its shares now stands at $279.6 billion, compared with Microsoft's $227.4 billion.

See also:

It's still a Windows world
Ballmer's is still bigger than Jobs'

[Follow Philip Elmer-DeWitt on Twitter MORE