Apple LogoDuring today's second quarter earnings release, Apple said that it is launching a new share repurchase authorization of $100 billion, with a 16 percent increase in quarterly dividend.

Apple expects the execution of its previous $210 billion share repurchase authorization to wrap up by the end of the current quarter, three quarters earlier than originally expected. From Apple CEO Tim Cook:

Recent corporate tax reform makes it possible for us to executive our program more efficiently. Given our strong confidence in Apple's future, we're announcing a significant update. Apple's Board approved an additional $100 billion share repurchase authorization, as well as a 16 percent increase in quarterly dividends, effective with the next divided later this month.

Following tax reform in the United States that will allow Apple to repatriate its overseas cash at a lower tax rate, Apple has said that it wants to reduce its net cash balance to zero, a goal it will accomplish through share buybacks, increased dividend payouts, acquisitions, and investments into research and development.

Apple CFO Luca Maestri said that Apple wants to maintain the cash it needs to fund day to day operations, invest in the future, and provide the flexibility it needs to respond strategically to opportunities that arise.

Maestri also said that Apple plans to execute its share buyback program thoughtfully, efficiently, and at a fast pace. Apple will provide updates on the program at the end of every quarter.

After the news of Apple's $100 billion share buyback program, Apple stock is up 4 percent in aftermarket trading.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Top Rated Comments

hlfway2anywhere Avatar
98 months ago
Investors have watched Apple closely because they have over $250 billion offshore that they can bring into the US cheaply now, because of the GOP corporate tax reduction from 35% to 15%. The GOP assured us that this gigantic inflow of money would trickle down to workers in the form of wage increases and bonuses. Knowledgeable economists said this would not happen. So what is Apple doing with their cash? Lowering prices? Raising salaries on employees at Apple stores? Giving iPads to schools? No. Apple just announced a 16% increase in their dividend and a $100 billion buyback of their own stock. This is a HUGE windfall for Apple stockholders. The rich are getting richer. It is good to pause from time to time and reflect on how dishonest the Republicans are, and how naive their supporters are to keep believing the lies.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
star_nerdy Avatar
98 months ago
Well, that escalated quickly.
Of course it escalated quickly. We are talking about a tax cut that promised Americans all kinds of wonderful things and that it would grow the economy.

The tax cuts were never designed to grow the economy. Tax cuts were designed to give the rich more money. If we wanted to grow the economy, we could have tied tax cuts to investment in our country. For example, if you want a tax cut, show you’re speeding up hiring. If you want a tax cut, show you’re building a factory.

The same thing happened under Bush when he did a tax holiday in 2004. Job growth was promised under Bush. Instead, companies repatriated money, cut jobs, and dis stock buy backs.

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/26/what-happened-the-last-time-companies-got-a-break-on-overseas-profits.html
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
IJ Reilly Avatar
98 months ago
You realize anyone can buy stock right? Even partial shares? Maybe you should do that instead of the next thousand dollar phone that is marginally different than the one you own and let go of some of this bitterness.
I look at reasoning of this kind and can only shake my head and wonder, wonder how anyone can miss a point by such a huge distance. As a member of the investor class myself (that is, one whose income comes predominantly from unearned sources), I could say that these tax cuts were not designed to overwhelmingly benefit people in my situation, instead the wider population that is much more in need. I could say that, but it wouldn't actually be true.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Scottsoapbox Avatar
98 months ago
Investors have watched Apple closely because they have over $250 billion offshore that they can bring into the US cheaply now, because of the GOP corporate tax reduction from 35% to 15%. The GOP assured us that this gigantic inflow of money would trickle down to workers in the form of wage increases and bonuses. Knowledgeable economists said this would not happen. So what is Apple doing with their cash? Lowering prices? Raising salaries on employees at Apple stores? Giving iPads to schools? No. Apple just announced a 16% increase in their dividend and a $100 billion buyback of their own stock. This is a HUGE windfall for Apple stockholders. The rich are getting richer. It is good to pause from time to time and reflect on how dishonest the Republicans are, and how naive their supporters are to keep believing the lies.
You realize anyone can buy stock right? Even partial shares? Maybe you should do that instead of the next thousand dollar phone that is marginally different than the one you own and let go of some of this bitterness.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
keysofanxiety Avatar
98 months ago
Investors have watched Apple closely because they have over $250 billion offshore that they can bring into the US cheaply now, because of the GOP corporate tax reduction from 35% to 15%. The GOP assured us that this gigantic inflow of money would trickle down to workers in the form of wage increases and bonuses. Knowledgeable economists said this would not happen. So what is Apple doing with their cash? Lowering prices? Raising salaries on employees at Apple stores? Giving iPads to schools? No. Apple just announced a 16% increase in their dividend and a $100 billion buyback of their own stock. This is a HUGE windfall for Apple stockholders. The rich are getting richer. It is good to pause from time to time and reflect on how dishonest the Republicans are, and how naive their supporters are to keep believing the lies.
Well, that escalated quickly.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
chizzlebot Avatar
98 months ago
I take it you are disappointed that the CEO of the world’s most valuable company, who supported Hillary Clinton, is not meeting your ideological expectations? Likewise, it appears an Apple board member that won a Presidential popular vote as a democrat who also opposes Trump will not make your Christmas card list either.

While this matter is not a right or left issue (but you care to make it one), than blame your own party that manages this company and hold them responsible. If you would like to take a realistic approach, as the Apple board has, invest and stop complaining. You will never get “rich” demanding another's earned money.
This is highly illogical. I'm not an American and don't care for your politics. That said, the issue of wealth distribution has a complex history and both political sides have patronised the 'trickle down' ideology at one time or another. The simple fact OP presented is that the current republics have championed this current approach as benefiting average Americans and as OP pointed out, it is not bearing fruit with Apple as the example. While he may not be correct in the long run or this may not be a particularly compelling example of this policy going wrong, his point remains unchallenged by your response.

Who Apple supported is irrelevant, who is on Apples board is irrelevant. Apple is a private company that will do what suits their bottom line. You are building straw men to win an non existent argument that suits your apparent political allegiances.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 26

6 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.1

Wednesday October 29, 2025 4:22 am PDT by
Apple is about to drop iOS 26.1, the first major point release since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least six notable changes and improvements to look forward to. We've rounded them up below. Apple has already provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of iOS 26.1, which means Apple will likely roll out the update to all compatible...
iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon: New Features for Your iPhone and Release Date

Monday October 27, 2025 7:55 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. Below, we outline key details about iOS 26.1. Release Date Given that Apple has yet to seed an iOS 26.1 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, the...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

8 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Thursday October 30, 2025 4:42 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
ios 26 1 slide to stop

iOS 26.1 Brings Back 2007 Feature in New Way

Friday October 31, 2025 1:40 pm PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a small but helpful change for iPhones, and it could prevent you from running late to something important. Specifically, when an alarm goes off in the Clock app, there is a new "slide to stop" control on the screen for turning off the alarm. On previous iOS 26 versions, there is simply a large "stop" button, which could be accidentally tapped. The new ...
M5 MacBook Pro

Waiting for New Macs? Apple Just Shared Bad News

Friday October 31, 2025 7:32 am PDT by
Apple has just given a strong indication that it will not be releasing any additional new Macs for the remainder of the year. Apple's CFO Kevan Parekh dropped the hint during the company's earnings call on Thursday:On Mac, keep in mind, we expect to face a very difficult compare against the M4 MacBook Pro, Mac mini, and iMac launches in the year-ago quarter.Parekh essentially gave a heads up ...
maxresdefault

Apple TV 4K Could Still Launch Before 2025 Ends: All the Rumored Features

Monday October 27, 2025 4:51 pm PDT by
Apple is designing an updated version of the Apple TV 4K, and rumors suggest that it could come out sometime in the next couple of months. We're not expecting a major overhaul with design changes, but even a simple chip upgrade will bring major improvements to Apple's set-top box. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. We've rounded up all the latest Apple TV rumors. ...
ipad mini 7 feature blue

OLED iPad Mini: Release Date, Pricing, and What to Expect

Wednesday October 29, 2025 7:13 am PDT by
Rumors are stoking excitement for the next-generation iPad mini that Apple is reportedly close to launching. So what should we expect from the successor to the iPad mini 7 that Apple released over a year ago? Read on to find out. Processor and Performance Apple is working on a next-generation version of the iPad mini (codename J510/J511) that features the A19 Pro chip, according to...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, and macOS Tahoe 26.1 Release Candidates

Tuesday October 28, 2025 1:07 pm PDT by
Apple today provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, macOS Tahoe 26.1, tvOS 26.1, watchOS 26.1, and visionOS 26.1 updates for testing purposes. The RCs betas come a week after Apple released the fourth betas. The new betas can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software...
apple tv hd

Apple Launched Its Big New Vision for TV 10 Years Ago Today

Thursday October 30, 2025 8:58 am PDT by
Apple launched the Apple TV HD, the Siri Remote, tvOS, and their accompanying App Store a decade ago today, marking a major overhaul of the device. The new vision for the Apple TV was unveiled on September 9, 2015 during Apple's "Hey Siri" event in San Francisco, where CEO Tim Cook introduced the device with the statement, "The future of TV is apps." The announcement represented a major...