Here's How Much Money You Would Have If You Bought Apple Stock Instead Of An iPod In 2001

Apple Inc AAPL is one of the most prolific companies in the world, known for its innovation and sleek design and marketing. Its stock is no different, one of the best performers in the market throughout the last 20 or so years. 

Apple released its famous iPod, a beautiful MP3 player compared to other models on the market, in November 2001 according to macworld.com, a site that tracks Apple news and updates. The original iPod had about 5GB of storage, or about 1,000 songs, and cost customers $399. 

But, what if you bought and held Apple’s stock instead of that iPod? Well, you’d have much more than a paperweight with a spinning dial. Now, for most people, even if you had purchased Apple’s stock in 2001, you probably would have sold some (or all) at some point in the last 21 years. 

But, just for fun, let’s explore this hypothetical. Apple’s stock on November 9, 2001 was just $0.33 a share (split-adjusted) according to Google Finance. This means, the $399.99 iPod price tag, would have bought around 1,209 shares. 

Today, Apple’s stock is worth around $162 a share. That means those 1,209 shares would be worth around $197,831 today. So, if you had bought Apple’s stock instead of the iPod in 2001, you’d have around $200,000 today. Not bad for a $400 investment.

Photo: Courtesy of raneko on flickr