IBM Tops Microsoft to Become Second-Most Valuable in Technology

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-09-30/ibm-tops-microsoft-to-become-second-most-valuable-in-technology.html

by tilt • 15 years ago

45 15 15 years ago

diminish• 15 years ago

Yes it occurred few months ago again I guess.

tpatke• 15 years ago

Microsoft still has the better P/E ratio. 9.4 for MSFT vs 14.5 for IBM. I can't say I understand why investors would value IBM's growth potential higher then Microsoft's.

The next big milestone is when Apple is worth two Microsofts. Heh.

tomjen32• 15 years ago

Personally I see it as MSFT having no future growth potential other than the size of their main market. They can't innovate and they have little chance of doing anything in the mobile space.

That is not to say that it is a bad investment, because they can milk the clients in their space for a very long time.

brudgers• 15 years ago

>"they have little chance of doing anything in the mobile space."

In the context of IBM v Microsoft, that's probably a bit lacking in explanatory power.

mgkimsal• 15 years ago

In the short term this is probably true. As long as the top execs stay in place, I'd agree. I seem to remember people having written off IBM as not having much of a future beyond milking clients, but they seem to have done some radical restructuring in the past 10 years or so, and seem somewhat rejuvenated.

MS could undergo a big shakeup/transformation and reemerge as more innovative and profitable. I just don't foresee that happening in the near term. "Never say never" :)

melling• 15 years ago

It even worse for Microsoft. Post-PC means more tablets and people using desktops/laptops less, and upgrading less frequently. At this times, tablets are Apple and Google. This will certainly eat into the sales of Windows and Office, Microsoft's big cash cows. Even if Microsoft does well with tablets, it doesn't look like they will approach the 90% market share they currently have in desktops.

JamieEi• 15 years ago

Microsoft continues to do very well in enterprise markets. It's true that their consumer mindshare is almost zero except for XBox, but there is a lot of growth to be had from enterprise servers and their various cloud offerings.

tocomment• 15 years ago

How does IBM make money?

MatthewPhillips• 15 years ago

Selling really expensive things to people with really big budgets.

notirk• 15 years ago

Enterprise sales, consulting, services. Mainframes still make up a large chunk of their revenue. Perhaps research/patents? They aren't really that consumer facing anymore, I guess that explains their ads on TV to keep their name out there.

loumf• 15 years ago

They also sell Enterprise Software (DB2, FileNet, Lotus, Rational, and a lot more).

The ads may be for their stock (indirectly) as much as for their products

IBM Tops Microsoft to Become Second-Most Valuable in Technology

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