Apple stock price finally exceeds $500

Published:  15 Feb at 6 PM

As reported by the BBC, for the first time ever, shares in technology firm Apple have exceeded $500 per stake. This marks an astonishing turnaround for the company, whose shares were in 1997 worth as low as $3.19, when it confronted the possibility of bankruptcy. The firm is now worth $460 billion.

The firm’s revival by Steve Jobs, who died last year, occurred first in computers before the iPod music player, followed by the popular iPhone and iPad. In January of this year, Apple announced record-breaking net revenue for October, November and December 2011, rising by 118% to $13.06 billion from the same time a year earlier.

The net profits were the fourth-largest in US business history. Mr Jobs co-founded the firm in Silicon Valley in the 1980s, but was let go in the same decade. He was asked to return in 1997, which was when he changed the firm’s product lines, concluding with the mega success of the iPhone and the iPad.

Apple is in a swelling patent war with competitors Google, HTC and Samsung over their operating systems. The technology giant recently filed a court motion that could ban Samsung's Galaxy Nexus, the smart phone which utilises Google's Android.

Apple will be ready next month to reveal the third generation of its iPad, say reports. The computing giant has also announced its plans to inspect the working conditions in its factories, with the Fair Labor Association due to audit several suppliers at Apple's request, including Foxconn in China.