Apple CEO Tim Cook to take more than 40% pay cut

[u/geoxol]

https://apnews.com/article/technology-apple-inc-tim-cook-business-d056553b10120c4a968b562cb7ece5d2

[u/BigGreen4]

According to the articles, this was his idea, after having listened to feedback from shareholders. He then put it to the shareholders to vote and they agreed, about 66% in favor of the new compensation package.

I just hope the funds saved will remain in employee compensation and be redirected to the employees. This would be a big step forward. (I understand that’s wishful thinking.)

[u/Z23kG3Cn7f → u/BigGreen4]

Apple is worth over $1TN in the bank.

It's their choice to not pay workers decently

Edit: I corrected it to worth, not cash. My bad.

[u/Cthulhuonpcin144p → u/Z23kG3Cn7f]

They have 48billion in cash+short term investments. It’s nowhere close to a trillion$

[u/korben2600 → u/Cthulhuonpcin144p]

Yeah, they're probably conflating cash reserves with Apple's market cap which recently broke valuation records at $1 trillion (2018) and later $2 trillion (2020).

Apple's cash and bond reserves have been as high as $270 billion at its peak. Once Orange Julius passed his billionaire tax cuts in 2017, they took advantage of a tax loophole in the law which allowed corporations to repatriate their offshore cash back into the USA at a one-time rate of 15% which saved Apple roughly $47 billion in taxes.

Instead of adjusting employee compensation upwards, as Republicans said would happen, boosting the economy, most corporations used much of their windfall on stock buybacks and shareholder dividends. Apple used these methods to transfer ~$175 billion of the repatriated cash directly to shareholders.

As of Oct 2022, they currently hold $180B in cash and bonds. Apple keeps about 46% of its cash reserves in corporate bonds. Probably some of the largest cash reserves of any corporation on Earth.

[u/NotReallyChaucer → u/korben2600]

Apple also, as a result of the 2017 Tax package, gave each employee below a certain executive level $2500 of RSUs that vested over three years. I didn’t read of other companies who actually took the opportunity to benefit their employees. Yes, the amount may seem paltry, but it’s not nothing.

[u/Justtryme90 → u/korben2600]

Those dividends they paid out at least did go to a ton of peoples 401Ks as most US broad market index funds are heavily invested in apple.

[u/Cthulhuonpcin144p → u/korben2600]

Wow. Thanks for all the information, it’s still an astounding amount of $. From my quick look at figures the number was a bit smaller, but I’m guessing it’s because of the bonds they are using as holdings.

[u/SpongeBad → u/korben2600]

While the amount of cash on hand is insane, I get it when it comes to Apple. Any company that came that close to not existing because of cash flow issues would do everything in their power to prevent it from happening again.

If iPhone sales drop off a cliff, Apple will have a lot of cash to reinvent themselves (again).

[u/Manny_Kant → u/korben2600]

Instead of adjusting employee compensation upwards, as Republicans said would happen, boosting the economy, most corporations used much of their windfall on stock buybacks and shareholder dividends. Apple used these methods to transfer ~$175 billion of the repatriated cash directly to shareholders.

You understand, surely, that RSUs are a substantial portion of the compensation package at most tech companies, including Apple, right? So sending that cash to shareholders is sending that cash to employees.

[u/ConfusedAccountantTW → u/korben2600]

I see you’ve taken the negative opinion here, alternative take, Trump’s tax cut incentivized Apple to bring cash back to the United States, of which they paid $38 billion in tax. $38 billion is a whole hell of a lot more than the zero which they had paid previously.

You word it like shareholders receiving value is a bad thing. Nearly 50% of Apple shares are held by retail investors, so anyone with a 401k surely benefited.

[u/throwtheclownaway20 → u/korben2600]

Didn't Apple actually have so much cash on hand that there was legit talk of them buying Greece?

[u/Skjolbir → u/throwtheclownaway20]

A company cannot buy a country. It’s literally not a thing you can do.

[u/coob → u/korben2600]

You need to subtract their liabilities from that 180bn - they raised lots for the buyback by selling bonds.

[u/reddorical → u/korben2600]

Saving up on case they want to buy any of their faang buddies, Microsoft or Disney