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    Big 5 tech companies lose more than $2.5tn in stock value

    2022 has been a rough year for the world's largest tech companies, with a series of disappointing results seeing the stock prices of Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta slumped, wiping off trillions of dollars in their market values.
    Source ©  ymgerman
    Source © 123rf ymgerman

    According to data presented by TradingPlatforms.com, social media giant Meta suffered the most brutal hit, with its stock value having plunged 70% year-to-date, the biggest drop among the big five tech companies.

    Almost $750bn wiped off the stock value

    Meta's move to the Metaverse dragged down profit, as the company lost a shocking $9.4bn in the nine months of 2022.

    Investors have been concerned about Meta's rising costs and expenses for some time. In the third quarter, they jumped by 19% year over year (YoY) to $22.1bn, while profits plunged by 52%. The company's operating income was down by 46% from the previous year to $5.66bn.

    The rising costs and plunging profits led to more than 11,000 layoffs, or 13% of Meta's workforce, and caused its stock value to plummet by $750bn since the beginning of the year. More than the loss of any other major tech company. According to YCharts data, Meta's market cap stood at $307bn last week, down from $1.05tn in January.

    Amazon lowest level stock plunge

    Amazon follows Meta when talking about the stock value drop.

    The e-commerce giant narrowly missed sales expectations for the third quarter, but what mostly spooked investors was its guidance for the important holiday quarter, which predicts a significant slowdown in YoY sales growth.

    Immediately after the announcement, Amazon's stock value plunged to its lowest level since early 2020 and down 45% for the year. Although it slightly recovered since then, the tech giant still lost $509bn or 35% of its stock value this year.

    Collective loss of $2.5tn in stock value this year

    Apple, Microsoft, and Alphabet also count their losses in hundreds of billions of dollars.

    In October, Alphabet reported its weakest quarter-over-quarter growth since 2013, except for the period early in the Covid-19 pandemic. Revenue growth slowed to 6% from 41% a year before as the company faced a continued decline in online ad spending. Also, its stock value dropped by $470bn or 28% year-to-date, the third-largest decrease among the Big Five.

    Microsoft lost $526bn or 22% of its stock value in 2022, while Apple has seen the smallest market cap drop of all five companies, with its stock value falling by $270bn or 10% this year.

    The YCharts data show the five tech giants have collectively lost more than $2.5tn in stock value year-to-date. Last week, their combined market caps amounted to $6.5tn, down from $9tn in January.

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