Apple Stock: What's It Really Worth?
AAPL is set to jump about $11 per share at the open this morning, which would take the stock to $354 per share.
In respect to the prospects for Apple and its shares, here is what some folks are saying.
It is also interesting to consider this:
| Company | Price to Earnings Ratio | Market Value |
| XOM - Exxon Mobil | 13.76 | $424 Billion |
| AAPL | 19.8 | $328 Billion |
| GE | 17.7 | $217 Billion |
| MT - Arcelor Mittal Steel | 19.5 | $56 Billion |
In today's Wall Street Journal, it was pointed out that AAPL has approximately $66 billion in cash and short term investments on its balance sheet. When the market cap is reduced by this cash pile, the result is a share price for the company of about $283 per share. The resulting PE of these shares is about 15.7.
But this also puts the value of the cash portion of the share price at about $71 per share ($66 billion cash divided by 921 million shares outstanding). But that portion of the shares has no current earnings, so for now it is a dead asset, with the future potential to acquire earnings or be returned to shareholders. But this cash, since it is held in dollars also has the potential to depreciate, as the dollar continues to fall relative to other world market currencies.
Clearly the momentum in earnings and product releases for AAPL is there. For now, this is what the market is pricing into the stock.
Hopefully this momentum will continue.
Ray Martin
View all articles by Ray Martin on CBS MoneyWatch»
Ray Martin has been a practicing financial advisor since 1986, providing financial guidance and advice to individuals. He has appeared regularly as a contributor on the CBS Early Show, CBS NewsPath, as a columnist on CBS Moneywatch.com and on NBC-TV's morning newscast TODAY. He has also appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show and is the author of two books.
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