The cheapest trillion-dollar stocks: Nvidia, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Alphabet or Meta?
According to one widely used valuation metric, there is a wide gap between the most expensive and the cheapest trillion-dollar stock.
Six U.S. companies are valued at $1 trillion or more and are all in the technology sector:
- Apple (AAPL -0.83%): 3.44 trillion US dollars
- Microsoft (MSFT -2.02%): 3.16 trillion US dollars
- NVIDIA (NVDA -3.70%): 3.14 trillion US dollars
- alphabet (GOOGL -1.24%) (GOOG -1.28%): 2.07 trillion US dollars
- Amazon (AMZN -2.21%): 1.87 trillion US dollars
- Meta-platforms (META -0.60%): 1.33 trillion US dollars
All of these companies are profitable, so they can be valued using the widely used price-earnings ratio (P/E). It is calculated by dividing the share price of a particular company by its earnings per share. The Nasdaq-100 The index is trading at a P/E ratio of 30.9, which is a good reference point:
Data from YCharts.
Nvidia is the most expensive trillion-dollar stock today on a P/E basis. However, the company is growing so fast that it has a P/E of just 33.1 based on next year’s earnings forecast. In other words, the valuation is much more reasonable if investors are willing to hold the stock for a few years.
The company’s cheapest stock is Alphabet. A judge recently ruled that Google Search is a monopoly, and the U.S. Department of Justice wants to break up the company to resolve the issue. That could take years – if it happens at all – but with growing competition from artificial intelligence chatbots threatening Google Search’s dominance, investors are cautious about Alphabet’s valuation.
Finally, Amazon deserves a mention. The company is on track to generate $635 billion in revenue this year, more than any of its competitors, and it trades at the cheapest price-to-sales ratio (which divides a company’s market capitalization by its revenue). Plus, the company is forecast to grow earnings by 63% this year and 23% in 2025, so its elevated P/E ratio may actually be justified.
In summary, a P/E ratio alone is not always the best indicator of value. Investors could easily argue that despite the price being too triple Given Alphabet’s rapid growth (and regulatory headwinds), Nvidia stock is a better buy than Alphabet stock on a P/E basis.
Randi Zuckerberg, former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister of Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta Platforms, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, a subsidiary of Amazon, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Anthony Di Pizio does not own any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
