Lost Crown: Apple No Longer Worth More Than Microsoft

Investors are listening to the ongoing iPhone 4 signal debacle, and are trading accordingly. For the first time since late May, Apple is worth less than Microsoft on the public market.

When Apple’s market capitalization surged past Microsoft’s earlier this year, many heralded it as the second coming of Jobs and the end of the Microsoft era. Instead, with the company’s recent problems combined with this slip in share price, Apple’s dependence on the continued strength of a small handful of products has been laid bare.

Unlike Microsoft, which has a plethora of large businesses, Apple depends heavily on several consumer product lines. If one goes out of fashion, the company’s market value can tumble.

As of this post’s writing, Microsoft is worth $219.8 billion, and Apple $219.71 billion. You can track the two here.