This market cap stuff is not really meaningful when looked at this way. Microsoft pays a dividend if it didn't all that cash would stay on its books and would

This market cap stuff is not really meaningful when looked at this way. Microsoft pays a dividend if it didn't all that cash would stay on its books and would have to result in an increase in its market cap. If you want to make a proper comparison (of this dubious stat) you should subtract the cash of each company from the market cap and then compare. Microsoft has returned more money to its shareholders than Apple is worth.