Apple (AAPL) May Become the Most Valuable Company in the Land

Apple Inc. (AAPL) has surged in the past year while Exxon Mobil (XOM) has slumped. If the trend continues, Steve Job’s company could pass Exxon to become the most valuable company in the land. The Cupertino, California-based company now has the second largest market cap in the U.S. It has passed Microsoft (MSFT) and Wal-Mart (WMT) this year and now trails Exxon Mobil’s market value by only about $50 billion. That may sound like a huge gap but it really isn’t — especially given how well Apple has done compared to Exxon Mobil lately.- CNNMoney