Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) has returned to the top spot as the world’s largest company by market capitalization. It has been through some astonishing ups and downs, but if you had bought shares in its initial public offering (IPO) in 1980 and held on, you would have had a lot more shares and a lot of money. Let’s see how much.
Holding on for the long term
Apple went public in December 1980 at $22 a share. Like virtually every stock over a period of nearly 45 years, Apple’s stock has risen and crashed several times. For example, it lost 21% of its value between 1989 and 1996 — a long time for an investor to hold on to a stock that’s making losses. But if you did, you’d be sitting on a nice windfall today.
Since then, Apple has built an incredible tech platform with a strong moat in its differentiated systems and applications. It has a strong, loyal fan base that only buys Apple products and consistently jumps on new drops and launches. This week, Apple released its latest software update, iOS18, with a slew of new upgrades and features. It is also investing in artificial intelligence (AI) to stay competitive in the tech race.
That’s why Apple stock has soared over time, going through five stock splits: three 2-for-1 stock splits in 1987, 2000, and 2005; a 7-for-1 split in 2014; and a 4-for-1 split in 2020. Each IPO share would have been worth $0.10 after the split, and you would own 224 shares today. At current prices, that’s worth $48,455.
In short, the stock has increased in value by more than 2,200 times since its IPO. For perspective, if you had instead invested $1,000 in the stock at the IPO, your investment would be worth $2.2 million today, not including the dividends paid to you over the years.
Should You Invest $1,000 in Apple Now?
Before you buy Apple stock, here’s what to consider:
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Jennifer Saibil has positions in Apple. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
If You Bought 1 Share of Apple Stock When Its IPO, You’d Own That Many Shares Now was originally published by The Motley Fool
