Briefly: Apple option grant feud, Fortune 500 jump, Apple II turns 30
Shareholders began a minor revolt on Monday, contending that Apple Inc. should change its stock grants while the company refused to budge. However, Apple consoled itself with soaring Fortune 500 rankings and the 30th anniversary of its first truly mainstream computer.
Stakeholders push for stock option overhaul
Apple today posted its yearly SEC proxy statement, offering one of the few glimpses the outside world can have of the Mac maker's financial politics.
Among the disclosures is news of struggle between Apple and two of its larger investor groups. Both the Hartford-based Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds as well as New York state's Amalgamated Bank LongView Collective have been revealed as pressuring Apple for more honesty in the way it grants stock options to employees.
The investment partnerships were particularly interested in preventing the same backdating scandals that forced the company to amend its options in the past. In a proposal uncovered by the proxy, the shareholders have asked Apple to disclose any grant dates a year ahead of time and to set the stock value to the average selling price of shares for the day of the grant -- preventing cherry-picked results and potential insider trading issues.
Apple was characteristically resistant to the idea. The California firm dismissed the proposal as part of its proxy statement: the suggestions weren't relevant to its updated compensation methods, Apple said. The company was keen to note that executives haven't received stock options in four years and were instead given tightly controlled grants without a set price.
Arguments from either side are expected to be put to rest soon through the annual shareholder's meeting, which is due May 10th at Apple's Cupertino campus. The meeting will also let investors have their say in voting for Apple's board of directors.
Jobs receives $1 salary another year
Also part of the proxy statement was confirmation that company CEO Steve Jobs has yet again received his official $1 salary for his work in 2006.
The executive began the tradition shortly after his return to Apple, done in part as a gesture to show that his resumption of control was a display of affection for the company motivated by more than money.
Jobs' salary is not his only source of revenue, as it includes stock benefits as well as various benefits, which have involved a private jet and similar perks.
Apple climbs the Fortune 500 charts
In happier news for the electronics giant, its financial influence was solidified on Monday through an update to the famed Fortune 500 list.
Apple is now ranked at number 121 through a spike in its revenue to $19.3 billion over the course of 2006 -- lifting the company 38 spots and passing some of its best-known influencers and partners, including Nike and Xerox.
The company's status was polished further when considering only computer sales. The Mac producer was ranked fourth in the Computers and Office Equipment category, placing it behind only industry monoliths HP ($91.7 m), IBM ($91.4), and Dell ($57.1 m).
Apple II celebrates 30th birthday
Another reason to celebrate was a historic occasion: Monday the 16th represented the 30th anniversary of the Apple II's first public appearance at the legendary West Coast Computer Faire. The computer began selling June 5th that year and went on to become Apple's most long-lived computer ever, only seeing its end in October 1993.
The 1MHz computer was equally well-known for its accessibility as one of the first to be designed more as a consumer product than a hobbyist's tool: the smooth beige casing hid many of the components that would normally remain open and was backed by a user manual written for comparatively average users rather than experts already familiar with BASIC and other programming languages.
Significantly, the chief motivator behind the aesthetic design -- co-founder Steve Jobs -- is still on-hand as CEO to mark the birthday despite being absent for eight of the thirteen years one of his cornerstone products could be found in the marketplace.
Stakeholders push for stock option overhaul
Apple today posted its yearly SEC proxy statement, offering one of the few glimpses the outside world can have of the Mac maker's financial politics.
Among the disclosures is news of struggle between Apple and two of its larger investor groups. Both the Hartford-based Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds as well as New York state's Amalgamated Bank LongView Collective have been revealed as pressuring Apple for more honesty in the way it grants stock options to employees.
The investment partnerships were particularly interested in preventing the same backdating scandals that forced the company to amend its options in the past. In a proposal uncovered by the proxy, the shareholders have asked Apple to disclose any grant dates a year ahead of time and to set the stock value to the average selling price of shares for the day of the grant -- preventing cherry-picked results and potential insider trading issues.
Apple was characteristically resistant to the idea. The California firm dismissed the proposal as part of its proxy statement: the suggestions weren't relevant to its updated compensation methods, Apple said. The company was keen to note that executives haven't received stock options in four years and were instead given tightly controlled grants without a set price.
Arguments from either side are expected to be put to rest soon through the annual shareholder's meeting, which is due May 10th at Apple's Cupertino campus. The meeting will also let investors have their say in voting for Apple's board of directors.
Jobs receives $1 salary another year
Also part of the proxy statement was confirmation that company CEO Steve Jobs has yet again received his official $1 salary for his work in 2006.
The executive began the tradition shortly after his return to Apple, done in part as a gesture to show that his resumption of control was a display of affection for the company motivated by more than money.
Jobs' salary is not his only source of revenue, as it includes stock benefits as well as various benefits, which have involved a private jet and similar perks.
Apple climbs the Fortune 500 charts
In happier news for the electronics giant, its financial influence was solidified on Monday through an update to the famed Fortune 500 list.
Apple is now ranked at number 121 through a spike in its revenue to $19.3 billion over the course of 2006 -- lifting the company 38 spots and passing some of its best-known influencers and partners, including Nike and Xerox.
The company's status was polished further when considering only computer sales. The Mac producer was ranked fourth in the Computers and Office Equipment category, placing it behind only industry monoliths HP ($91.7 m), IBM ($91.4), and Dell ($57.1 m).
Apple II celebrates 30th birthday
Another reason to celebrate was a historic occasion: Monday the 16th represented the 30th anniversary of the Apple II's first public appearance at the legendary West Coast Computer Faire. The computer began selling June 5th that year and went on to become Apple's most long-lived computer ever, only seeing its end in October 1993.
The 1MHz computer was equally well-known for its accessibility as one of the first to be designed more as a consumer product than a hobbyist's tool: the smooth beige casing hid many of the components that would normally remain open and was backed by a user manual written for comparatively average users rather than experts already familiar with BASIC and other programming languages.
Significantly, the chief motivator behind the aesthetic design -- co-founder Steve Jobs -- is still on-hand as CEO to mark the birthday despite being absent for eight of the thirteen years one of his cornerstone products could be found in the marketplace.
Comments
This is not a spike.... a spike is a pointy thing. When we see a dramatic downturn to $6B annual revenue then we will call the previous event a spike, At the moment it is growth.
Duh!
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/busine...pensation.html
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More important Apple related financial news. Kx Systems, the leader in high-performance analytics on streaming and historical data, has announced kdb+ database and application support for the Mac OS X operating system. Kx added Mac support because of increasing requests from kdb+ developers, who work in the leading global financial firms that comprise the Kx user base.
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/st...4567147&EDATE=
He gets a free lunch too.
And he gets a free Washington State apple with his sandwiches.
More important Apple related financial news. Kx Systems, the leader in high-performance analytics on streaming and historical data, has announced kdb+ database and application support for the Mac OS X operating system. Kx added Mac support because of increasing requests from kdb+ developers, who work in the leading global financial firms that comprise the Kx user base.
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/st...4567147&EDATE=
Now THAT'S a good news story!
Jobs receives $1 salary another year
Also part of the proxy statement was confirmation that company CEO Steve Jobs has yet again received his official $1 salary for his work in 2006.
The executive began the tradition shortly after his return to Apple, done in part as a gesture to show that his resumption of control was a display of affection for the company motivated by more than money.
Jobs' salary is not his only source of revenue, as it includes stock benefits as well as various benefits, which have involved a private jet and similar perks.
I wouldn't chalk up Steve's 'affection for the company' as a real reason for his return. I'd say it was a case of wanting to show those who ousted him that he was right all along. Steve has one hell of an ego, and as a master negotiator, he could probably talk Donald Trump out of his hairpiece.
The executive began the tradition shortly after his return to Apple, done in part as a gesture to show that his resumption of control was a display of affection for the company motivated by more than money.
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Funny!
I wouldn't chalk up Steve's 'affection for the company' as a real reason for his return. I'd say it was a case of wanting to show those who ousted him that he was right all along. Steve has one hell of an ego, and as a master negotiator, he could probably talk Donald Trump out of his hairpiece.
No, its not affection, and its not about proving people right. Its about "Who cares about base salary". CEO money is in the stock options, bonuses, perks, etc. Salary is nothing compared to the rest (look at how much he raked in a year or two ago with his stock he got).
Oh, and Trump doesn't wear a hairpiece. Its a comb-over (way over....). For all the money he's got, he could afford a much better toupee then that.
And the Apple II's 30. Or it would be thirty if it were still alive, but its been dead officially for 14 years, and was on life support for 5 years before that (people just wouldn't let them pull the plug on the thing!)
No, its not affection, and its not about proving people right. Its about "Who cares about base salary". CEO money is in the stock options, bonuses, perks, etc. Salary is nothing compared to the rest (look at how much he raked in a year or two ago with his stock he got).
Do you know many CEOs? After you start talking about stock compensation that balloons beyond millions or billions, what can be satisfying to such a person? Ego is a huge, huge factor. Money is only important to those who don't have it.
I wouldn't chalk up Steve's 'affection for the company' as a real reason for his return. I'd say it was a case of wanting to show those who ousted him that he was right all along. Steve has one hell of an ego, and as a master negotiator, he could probably talk Donald Trump out of his hairpiece.
Actually, given it was his first company, founded in his garage, and had a lot of Steve's ideological idealism invested, I would say there would be a certain significant degree of "affection for the company." (along with the ego and money and all that :P)