Saudi Aramco’s market capitalization is currently 7.926 trillion Saudi Riyals (US$2.1 trillion), while Apple’s valuation is below $2 trillion.
The renowned oil conglomerate Saudi Arabian Oil Co (TADAWUL: 2222) has once against surpassed American based tech giant Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) in market capitalization. The overtaking of Apple by the oil behemoth Saudi Aramco comes after tech stocks suffered a blow causing a dip in Apple’s valuation.
Saudi Aramco has stood strong amid oil price slumps gaining about 1.1 percent in the past month. With Apple losing about 12 percent in September alone, its market capitalization has dipped from about $2.3 its previous peak to the $1.9 trillion it is currently pegged at. This dip shows about a 20 percent decline worth $400 billion.
Saudi Aramco’s market capitalization is currently 7.926 trillion Saudi Riyals (US$2.1 trillion). A feat sustained amid anticipation by Saudi Aramco to pay out a dividend of US$75 billion, That would be more than five times what Apple has paid out to shareholders in the past four quarters per a report from the Telegraph.
Saudi Aramco Has Massive Plunges in Its Strides
As a state-owned oil company, Saudi Aramco has lived up to its expectations with respect to cash investments it’s ventured in in times past. Coinspeaker reported back in January that Saudi Aramco sold 450 million shares in its Initial Public Offering (IPO), raising $29.4 billion dollars in what has been described as the largest IPO ever.
Following the IPO, the company surpassed the likes of Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) in valuation.
“We are happy with the results today. And you have seen the market responds to our results, the company will continue to be the leader globally when it comes to the energy sector and at the same time, we are looking at sustained and growing dividends to our investors. At the same time we continue our growth strategy, increasing profitability across cycles,” commented Aramco CEO Amin Nasser following the record-breaking IPO.
The company has been able to sustain the growth promised by the CEO first by hitting the $2 trillion market cap barely on the second day of trading and as it has made other key investments following the IPO. On Wednesday, June 17, Saudi Aramco completed a 70% stake purchase in the nation’s other petrochemical giant Sabic.
The deal was valued at $70 billion and was described by Yasir Al Rumayyan, Governor, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), the entity through which the deal was inked as a significant milestone for the three companies involved in the deal.
The incessant battle between Apple and Saudi Aramco as the most valuable companies in the world has always been impacted by the market forces. Irrespective of the value of each company at any point in time, precedents have shown that neither of the two business giants is able to sustain the position for long.
next