The world’s most valuable company has turned into a bit of a casino stock.
Since Apple Inc on February 29 became only the sixth company in U.S. history to top $500 billion in market capitalization, trading has become more volatile, indicating that more investors are tracking headlines and looking for quick gains.
Apple has gained 32 percent since the beginning of the year, outstripping its gains for all of 2011. It accounts for more than 4 percent of the weight of the S&P 500 index, a kind of outsized standing that has caused its moves to dictate market direction on a daily basis.
That’s a trend that is causing consternation among some players in the market. They note that other companies that had become members of the elite $500 billion club not only couldn’t sustain their standing, but weighed on the entire market as they fell.
