Nvidia's market cap hasn't been this close to Apple's since 2009

By Emily Bary

Nvidia is getting closer to a $3 trillion valuation - after it wasn't even worth $1 trillion a year ago

The road to a $3 trillion market capitalization for Nvidia Corp. might very well run through Apple Inc.

Nvidia shares (NVDA) are on a major hot streak, while Apple's stock (AAPL) has been in a rut this year. Now, the market-cap gap between the two companies is the tightest it's been since 2009, as the chip maker looks to be the third-ever U.S. company to finish a trading day with a $3 trillion valuation.

As of the end of Tuesday's session, Nvidia had a $2.848 trillion valuation, while Apple had a $2.913 trillion valuation. That meant the margin between the two was $65.80 billion - the narrowest it's been since Jan. 20, 2009, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

See also: Nvidia is sporting growth one tech CEO says hasn't been seen 'in the history of capitalism'

The gap is nearly the size of Apple's entire market cap at that January 2009 point: Back then, Apple's market value was $69.56 billion, while Nvidia's was $3.87 billion.

Nvidia's rise up the market-cap charts has been notable. At this point last year, the company wasn't yet worth $1 trillion, and three months ago, it wasn't yet worth $2 trillion. But it achieved that first milestone on June 13, 2023, before becoming the fastest to cross from $1 trillion to $2 trillion when it closed above that point on March 1, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

Shares of Nvidia continue to blaze higher in the aftermath of the company's most recent earnings report, which brought another staggering forecast as well as upbeat talk about the future beyond the current quarter.

Nvidia's stock advanced 7% in Tuesday trading, and it's up about 20% over the past three trading sessions. The stock closed Tuesday at $1,139.01 and needs to hit $1,200 to reach the $3 trillion mark. That's based on the share count put out in Nvidia's last annual filing, however, and could change once Nvidia releases its 10-Q for the latest quarter.

Read: Nvidia's stock extends its surge - and this number shows why it's 'truly unique'

Only Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and Apple have ever reached the $3 trillion threshold before. While Apple isn't there anymore, Microsoft's market value stands at about $3.20 trillion.

Shares of Nvidia are up 130% so far this year, but shares of Apple are down about 1%. The smartphone maker has seen its stock lag in the face of sluggish smartphone trends and questions about whether the company is doing enough in artificial intelligence.

Opinion: Forget AI. Apple's plan to restore confidence is a $110 billion stock buyback.

-Emily Bary

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05-28-24 1732ET

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