“Wednesday’s move by Costco to distribute a special dividend ahead of tax hikes next year has renewed buzz that Apple may follow suit,” Tom Bemis blogs for marketWatch,
“With the fiscal cliff looming, companies sitting on big cash piles are facing the prospects of investor unrest if they fail to act before increased dividend taxes kick in next year,” Bemis writes. “And Apple’s sitting on the biggest pile of cash of anyone, around $120 billion, as Insider Monkey notes.”
Read more in the full article here.
Start a rumor, generate buzz, pray the company falls for it.
Yeah. Really! I mean I’m all for it but, geeze, talk about idle speculation. Sheesh.
Bad idea. Hoard cash. If Apple were a $5 stock with $2 a share cash(2013) and 20% growth would you buy it? Apple will be 1st stock to trade off cash hoard in a couple years. Margins et at will be meaningless. Right now that would take a 100/1 split.
Wow. Costco did something and therefore Apple might do the same thing? You might as well write an article about “Apple might have a fire sale on the iPad because HP did with their tablets”.
Stupid.
Apple is going to need the money. IMHO they should cancel the dividend and buyback. It’s a waste of money.
Not if you’re getting the dividends. I rather like it.
I have owned Apple stock since 2001. I’d rather they use the money more wisely.
Oh yeah? Like for what? You’re the [self-proclaimed] cynical genius on this site that knows more about Apple and AAPL than anyone (IYHO), so be specific. Let’s hear what Cook and Company should do with this mountain of cash–and spare no detail please.
Stock buy backs are the biggest waste of cash any company can perform.
The buyback is to cover options paid out to employees to prevent stock dilution.
The idea is to keep the number of stocks consistent.
It is basically the company paying for the cost of the options.
Not a cynical genius- just not a fanboi.
I agree that Apple has been ripped off and harmed by Google, Samsung & Co. I also see a CEO and legal staff unable to do a damn thing about it.
I also see a company running away from the computing market and ignoring the pro apps & hardware that kept the lights on and granted Apple much of it’s cachet.
I see a company vulnerable to the vagaries of it’s supply chain despite having more than enough resources to bring it in house.
I see a company unable to do anything more than me too in internet services.
I see a company that has left truckloads of money on the table by abandoning the enterprise and embedded markets.
The spending should start by fixing those issues. Not buying back stock or handing cash back to investors.
“Use” being the operative word here. Apple isn’t “using” any of the money. And a lot of Apple employees own a LOT of stock, and these stock market games that keep AAPL artificially low hurt Apple employees too. So… Apple should do something special to help boost the stock. A split, why not?! But dividends are also a very nice thank you to stock holders, and a big F U to the game-players on the market. Apple has more than enough cash laying around. It’s time to share a smidge of it. Yes, it’s sad that it comes down to this. But AAPL below $600 is an extremely sad and frustrating state.
How about a Fab plant, or LCD screen plant, a little bit more money moved over to Siri, Search and Map development, there are plenty of projects at Apple that need attention.
Apple should be distributing iTunes 11.
How about distributing parachutes, Apple, for when we go over that cliff!
So over dramatic, this fiscal cliff. There are billions in the world who wish they had such problems.
It’s not a cliff, and going over could be a good thing. Probably won’t happen since Republicans are starting to sound a tiny bit reasonable. Costco is nuts for taking drastic action on a complete unknown. Div taxes may stay put, or just go up for the .01%, or go up an unknown amount for everyone. Cook can’t be stupid enough to do this. It would put a lot of money in my pocket, short term, but I’m dead set against doing anything based on an unknown.
Yeah, using Rumor & Buzz to trigger a feedback loop is a waste of time, energy and $$$!
Rumor & Buzz would likely be a better bar drink than a sound business strategy.
I hope Apple can give me $15 special dividend per share for my Christmas .
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteridge%27s_law_of_headlines
a “special dividend” is the calling card of a brainless management that doesn’t know how to innovate in the marketplace. If Apple was to make a mistake of this colossal magnitude, i would start to diversify my Apple investment.
Apple needs to take its enormous pile of cash and produce new class-leading products, redoubling their efforts where they are currently stumbling, and entering markets that are ripe for picking.
Yes, and there is no rush to spend it, use it as conditions change in the tech world.
what happened to the plain old shareholders dividend we were supposed to see in 3rd qtr? it wouldn’t add up to a lot for me but I appreciate the gesture/cash. hmm?
Been paid out. 4th quarter, and first.
You already got it.. A few weeks ago, the 2nd (recent) dividend came out.