Apple Inc. (AAPL) stock entered green in the after-hours at $174.44 with a gain of 0.06% only, on December 14. While the gain was very slight, the stock seems to be recovering from its previous fall due to its mask mandate.
In regular trading, the stock lost 0.08% at $174.33 with an active volume of 139.38 million shares. Soon in the after-hours, AAPL started trading in the green with over 14.96 million shares exchanging.
What is Happening?
Recently, new updates on the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 emerged. The WHO warned people about the grave situation as the death toll surpassed 800,000 in the U.S. alone. According to WHO, the new variant is spreading at an even faster rate than the previous ones. With little to no symptoms, the masses seem to be little concerned with it.
Based on the news, Apple Inc. announced a mask mandate for all U.S. stores on Tuesday. Moreover, AAPL also said that it will limit in-store occupancy again at various locations. This announcement led the stock to trade in the red on Tuesday. Currently, the stock seems to be recovering from the effects of the news. As it entered green once again, in the after-hours on Tuesday.
AAPL’s Financials
On October 28, the company announced its financial results for fiscal 2021, the fourth quarter, which ended on September 25, 2021. According to the results, the quarter reported record revenue of $83.4 billion. This compares to the year-ago revenue of $64.7 billion, hence an increase of 29% year-over-year.
Moreover, the net income in the Q4 of fiscal 2021, was $20.5 billion, against $12.6 billion in the year-ago quarter. Resultantly, the earnings per basic and diluted share for Q4 of fiscal 2021, were $1.25 and $1.24 respectively. In comparison, the same were $0.74 and $0.73 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020.
AAPL’s $3 Trillion Milestone
Currently, the 16.41 billion outstanding shares of AAPL have a market capitalization of $2.88 trillion. With the company being so close to the $3 Trillion mark, most institutions and investors have been raising its price target. The Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Evercore ISI, CFRA, all have recently raised AAPL’s price target.
Further, Apple’s shares have been gaining throughout 2021, going up by 31.38% year to date. It is only a few percent short of hitting a $3 Trillion market valuation. Hence, with a boost in its price value from most institutions, AAPL looks set to become the first 3T market capital company.
