Apple stock jumps after buyback announcement, Icahn says "Keep buying, Tim!"

Posted:
in AAPL Investors edited February 2014
Apple shares are trading up nearly $10 after CEO Tim Cook revealed the company's recent $14 billion buyback and hinted at an entry into new markets, though Wall Street's reaction was not good enough for activist investor Carl Icahn.

Tim Cook
Apple CEO Tim Cook during an interview at the D11 conference.


Icahn took to Twitter on Friday to chide his Wall Street neighbors, saying that Apple's current share price was "ridiculous" when compared with that of fellow Silicon Valley titan Google. Google is trading at roughly 19 times its estimated operating profit in 2014 --?a similar multiple for Apple would price its shares well over $1,200.

The billionaire added that Wall Street is "apparently still not listening" to Apple chief Tim Cook's repeated pronouncements that the company is on the verge of taking on new markets, such as wearables with the widely-rumored "iWatch." Some analysts believe a product like the iWatch could add as much as $17 billion per year to Apple's coffers.

$GOOG @ 19x2014 est operating profit. At same multiple $AAPL=$1,245 per share. Ridiculous. Keep buying Tim! You still have $145 billion cash

— Carl Icahn (@Carl_C_Icahn)


Icahn's missives come less than one day after Cook gave a wide-ranging interview to the Wall Street Journal in which he said Apple had made an "aggressive" and "opportunistic" move to repurchase $14 billion worth of its shares after its stock falterd following weaker-than-expected, but still record-breaking, earnings in the holiday quarter.

"It means that we are betting on Apple. It means that we are really confident on what we are doing and what we plan to do," Cook said in the interview. "We're not just saying that. We're showing that with our actions."

Cook also intimated that Apple would soon make good on promises of product line expansion. "There will be new categories," he said. "We're not ready to talk about it, but we're working on some really great stuff."

Tim Cook again confirms $AAPL will launch new products in new categories (plural) this year. Wall Street apparently still not listening.

— Carl Icahn (@Carl_C_Icahn)


AAPL shares were up $8.17, or 1.59%, to $520.68 as of 3:00 pm Friday.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 48
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member

    I'm really getting sick of this Icahn media-whore/market-manipulator/hudge-fund-charlatan. I think there needs to be some kind of law preventing people like himself who own billions in stocks from talking about stocks he owns on a public forum like Twitter/Facebook/radio/TV. It's the only hope we have for reining in these Wall St. crooks.

  • Reply 2 of 48
    sudonymsudonym Posts: 233member
    iCon needs to go away. For Apple.
  • Reply 3 of 48
    I would like to think that since he already has so much money (to the point that it doesn't matter how much) icahn really believes in Apple and isn't interested in making more billions no matter what.

    But that would be me being stupid. He only wants money to make more money, even if the world burns. I would understand it if he needed it to put food on the table, but guys like these? Trash.
  • Reply 4 of 48
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by pedromartins View Post



    I would like to think that since he already has so much money (to the point that it doesn't matter how much) icahn really believes in Apple and isn't interested in making more billions no matter what.

     

       Naive much?

     

    Quote:
    But that would be me being stupid. He only wants money to make more money, even if the world burns. I would understand it if he needed it to put food on the table, but guys like these? Trash.


     


    Indeed.

  • Reply 5 of 48
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Ireland View Post

     

    I'm really getting sick of this Icahn media-whore/market-manipulator/hudge-fund-charlatan. I think there needs to be some kind of law preventing people like himself from talking about stocks he owns on a public forum like Twitter/Facebook/radio/TV. It's the only hope we have for reining in these Wall St. crooks.


    The fact that he has money and is not the nicest person in the world does not mean he can't express his opinion?! Perhaps you're more scared (or jealous) of the fact that people might actually be persuaded by him?

     

    It's Cook's job as a CEO to articulate a counter-argument.

     

    (For the  record I remain suspicious of his motives, and I don't think that a debt-laden repurchase of the size he's recommending at this price -- or above -- makes much economic sense for Apple.)

  • Reply 6 of 48
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post

     

    The fact that he has money and is not the nicest person in the world does not mean he can't express his opinion?


     

    I'd be nice if it were that simple.

  • Reply 7 of 48
    Hey AI, why not forget icahn and the stock BS and focus on the interesting things that Tim said? Apple doesn't need the stock.

    Tim said some great things about the Mac.
  • Reply 8 of 48

    Why does everyone think he's an evil short-term investor?

     

    He buys low and sells high.  Do you just buy a stock because you love it then hold on to it forever no matter what because you love it?  Get a wife or something.  Get a dog.

     

    Name one company he's hurt.  Don't say TWA because all air lines, especially in the 80's were crap.  United, Delta, America, they all went bankrupt at one time or another.  TWA was crashing with or without Icahn.

  • Reply 9 of 48
    jungmarkjungmark Posts: 6,926member
    I wish Apple would just buy Crazy Carl's stock.
  • Reply 10 of 48
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    The market was up overall today. So if Apple was up because of the buybacks that means it would have been flat or down today, even though the rest of the market was up.
  • Reply 11 of 48
    charlitunacharlituna Posts: 7,217member
    Carl will never be happy
  • Reply 12 of 48
    rogifan wrote: »
    The market was up overall today. So if Apple was up because of the buybacks that means it would have been flat or down today, even though the rest of the market was up.

    So what?
  • Reply 13 of 48
    Money markets in general need to go. We do not need non-producing entities swallowing up the world's wealth without giving a damn thing of any use to real people back.
  • Reply 14 of 48
    rob53rob53 Posts: 3,241member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by pedromartins View Post



    I would like to think that since he already has so much money (to the point that it doesn't matter how much) icahn really believes in Apple and isn't interested in making more billions no matter what.



    But that would be me being stupid. He only wants money to make more money, even if the world burns. I would understand it if he needed it to put food on the table, but guys like these? Trash.

    Rich people have a disease that causes them to think that enough is never enough. I have seen way too people with way too much money complain about spending any of it even when they need medical assistance. They just can't part with anything. They even have problems buying good food, only wanting to spend the least amount possible and complaining when their "hard earned money" is used to help the less fortunate among us. 

     

    Icahn fits this bill perfectly. He will never have enough and will never quit boasting about the money he has. 

  • Reply 15 of 48
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by rob53 View Post

     

    Rich people have a disease that causes them to think that enough is never enough. I have seen way too people with way too much money complain about spending any of it even when they need medical assistance. They just can't part with anything. They even have problems buying good food, only wanting to spend the least amount possible and complaining when their "hard earned money" is used to help the less fortunate among us. 

     

    Icahn fits this bill perfectly. He will never have enough and will never quit boasting about the money he has. 


    Largely will go to charities he selects at the end - don't be so envious, it stinks 

     

    Thanks Carl - Tim is outstanding CEO - his only weakness is not paying attention to the capital/stock price - which could destroy a company dependent on new talent (engineers) and public perception.

     

    Apple is now more of a "winner" after he has taken stock from 300s to 500s - will be even better at the 700 number again in several months

  • Reply 16 of 48
    rob53rob53 Posts: 3,241member

    I've seen financial websites ask if Apple bought back their stock to appease Icahn. The answer is a big fat NO! Apple does what they want to do, when they want to do it, and simply saw the big dip as a buying opportunity to satisfy the amount they already said they were going to buy back. Apple doesn't have enough money to go private or I bet they would. All the stock owned by Apple employees could easily be converted to something else but I'm sure Apple employees like the amount of growth their stock has had and really wish it would keep growing the way it should instead of being manipulated by a bunch of worthless analysts.

  • Reply 17 of 48

    Why all this Icahn hate?

     

    Why does everyone think he's an evil short-term investor?

     

    He buys low and sells high.  Do you just buy a stock because you love it then hold on to it forever no matter what because you love it?  Get a wife or something.  Get a dog.

     

    Name one company he's hurt.  Don't say TWA because all air lines, especially in the 80's were crap.  United, Delta, America, they all went bankrupt at one time or another.  TWA was crashing with or without Icahn.

  • Reply 18 of 48
    y2any2an Posts: 187member
    The only logical reason for Icahn to speak up about boosting the share price is to exit and profit, proving he is a short term investor with no long term interest in the company.
  • Reply 19 of 48

    So we are supposed to assume that Apple stock went down based on sound insight into their future, and that future suddenly got better because they are spending money on stock holders, rather than on technology or production facilities?

     

    The most productive company with the best brand has to do stock buybacks to warrant a bump in their stock?

     

    Sure, a buyback will promote stock -- but they big players gaming this stock racket were going to boost the stock anyway. It's almost like the weather man is claiming the latest storm was due to the last parade in that city. Or the price of oil went up based on "threats" in some Middle East country -- as if there weren't threats last week, or the week before.

     

    Stocks swing up and down because someone sees an opportunity to get some blood out of the suckers holding stock, and the price of oil goes up because futures contracts can make them go up. Market timing also makes profits for the big players who manipulate this stuff.

     

    And to be a "stock expert" on TV -- you have to either ignore this detail or be too stupid to notice this detail and just keep people buying and selling.

     

    Sheesh, I sound cynical to myself, if I weren't so damn right.

  • Reply 20 of 48
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by y2an View Post



    The only logical reason for Icahn to speak up about boosting the share price is to exit and profit, proving he is a short term investor with no long term interest in the company.

     

    Oh how dare you disparage the sage stock advise of Carl Icahn. Oh wait; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Icahn -- yeah, no, never mind. All his office needs is a Stripper Pole to offset this vaunted ethics and accountability with his sage wisdom. Oh and a mirror ball, and some black lights. A fog machine, maybe Donald Trump lounging naked on a black velvet painting. The last scene of "Fight Club" where the city blows up is done in a tasteful ceramic intaglio.

     

    Carl Icahn has a bloody Elvis under his foot and he holds a sword that sprays marshmallow flavored Vodka into his fountain. It's inscribed below with; "Yes, I can take it with me Momma!"

     

    Sorry, yes, I think we were talking about stock appreciation or something, but I'm just dazzled right now by the 3D projection on his Swan statuettes -- it makes it look as if the little Putti in his living room are flying about...

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