[driftdiver]

All three of those companies are in different industries. The margins of profit between companies in different industries are different and not comparable for a host of reasons... primarily because the economic inputs that make up their products are completely different. And yet the title of the article is "Apple the Most Valuable Company in the World? Bet on It. " Which everyone knows is hyperbole but you made the post and you continue to make the case for Apple. So you cannot say they will be the most valuable company in the world and then equivocate when that position is disproved. Apple is nowhere close to the most valuable company in the world. They aren't even close to being the most valuable tech company in the world as Puget has shown. So do you really mean they are the most valuable company that makes trendy, semi-secure and yet over priced gadgets?

[antiRepublicrat]

So you cannot say they will be the most valuable company in the world and then equivocate when that position is disproved.

The issue of quarterly profit margins does not directly equate to most valuable company in the world. There is far more involved in the market determining a company's value, such as a solid history of profitability and success when expanding to new markets.

[Swordmaker]

They aren't even close to being the most valuable tech company in the world as Puget has shown.

They already ARE the most valuable tech company in the world, driftdiver... there is no question about that... and your claim they aren't flies in the face of facts. Puget proved nothing except his ignorance of Finance. Facts are facts. Value is perception of the people willing to buy the stock. The Market Cap of Apple is the proof of the pudding.

You can claim whatever you want... but you cannot deny that the value of Apple stock right now is what it is. To deny reality is insanity.