Apple Continues as Best Performing DJIA Stock of 2017
Apple remains the best performing Dow stock to date in 2017, having added nearly a third to its share price and pushing its market cap above $800 billion.
Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) added $0.65 last week, just a slight gain (0.4%) after posting its latest 52-week high on May 15. The company remains the best-performing stock by a wide margin among the 30 equities that comprise the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA). The company’s stock is up 32.63% year to date, well above second-place McDonald’s 23.12% improvement.
The company’s market cap at Friday’s close was $803.67 billion, so it’s position as the world’s most valuable publicly traded company remains secure.
Apple and Nokia last week settled a patent licensing dispute, ending up with Apple signing a multiyear license related to Nokia’s intellectual property. In addition, in its new incarnation as a networking equipment supplier, Nokia will supply Apple with network infrastructure products like routers and switches, along with technical services.
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That was the good news on Apple’s legal front. The less-good news is that the company’s dispute with Qualcomm continues as the chipmaker has now requested a court order to force Apple’s contract manufacturers to keep paying royalties while the legal case with Apple proceeds.
Apple also applied for a license from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that would allow the company to test 5G cellular service in the 28-Ghz and 39-Ghz bands. According to a report at Business Insider, Apple is testing the piece of 5G service known as millimeter-wave technology. Interestingly, the DJIA’s worst performing stock in 2017 is Verizon, which just paid $3.1 billion for a huge swath of spectrum in those very bands.
Apple shares closed at $153.61 on Friday, in a 52-week range of $91.50 to $156.65. The consensus 12-month price target is $160.94, according to MarketWatch.
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Paul Ausick has been writing for 247Wallst.com for more than a decade. He has written extensively on investing in the energy, defense, and technology sectors. In a previous life, he wrote technical documentation and managed a marketing communications group in Silicon Valley.
He has a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Chicago and now lives in Montana, where he fishes for trout in the summer and stays inside during the winter.
