Apple is now Debt Free

MacRumors · Feb 18, 2004, 10:24 AM

99mac.se publishes an internal memo from Steve Jobs to Apple employees today.

According to the Memo, Jobs states that "Today is a historic day of sorts for our company." Apple used $300 million in cash to pay off the rest of their debt, and is now a debt-free company. A big turnaround from over $1 billion in debt in mid-1997. Also noted in the memo is that Apple currently has $4.8 billion in the bank at this time.

Messiatosh · Feb 18, 2004, 10:25 AM

Bodes well for the future, here's to another nearly 30 years.

yoman · Feb 18, 2004, 10:26 AM

now if only Apple would try to get us all in debt with new and incredible computers...

We're still waiting

Grimace · Feb 18, 2004, 10:28 AM

it will be interesting to see how investors look at this. Stock prices for Apple have never been all that great.

JJTiger1 · Feb 18, 2004, 10:28 AM

An internal Apple email from Steve Jobs says that Apple has paid off their $300 million debt. Apple is now debt free.

The email was displayed last night at a MUG meeting by an Apple employee.
The employee was thrilled.

I would stay tuned to Apple news releases for confirmation.

Not yet posted at http://www.apple.com/hotnews/ (Feb 18, 2004 05:57 AM PST)

gwuMACaddict · Feb 18, 2004, 10:31 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by carletonmusic
it will be interesting to see how investors look at this. Stock prices for Apple have never been all that great.

this has to help

russed · Feb 18, 2004, 10:34 AM

lets hope they spend even more money on R&D now and churn out even more products!

Nik_Doof · Feb 18, 2004, 10:35 AM

All i gotta say is congrats to them, not alot of companies can pull off having no debt at all...

blueBomber · Feb 18, 2004, 10:35 AM

this is great! While all the other computer companies struggle to turn a profit in the current market (Dell excluded), Apple is doing well. Looks like we may see another 20 years of Macintosh, even though Apple is perpetualy going out of business in the eyes of alot of people.

guyute · Feb 18, 2004, 10:35 AM

Smart business move!!

Mudbug · Feb 18, 2004, 10:36 AM

Holy crap that's a lot of money. Nice to see a corporation, regardless of who it is, stand up for itself and get in the black. Bleeding red ink is not a good way to be. This should help squelch the "Apple Death Knell" as it's come to be known.

JJTiger1 · Feb 18, 2004, 10:38 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by JJTiger1
An internal Apple email from Steve Jobs says that Apple has paid off their $300 million debt. Apple is now debt free.

The email was displayed last night at a MUG meeting by an Apple employee.
The employee was thrilled.

Yes, 99mac.se, that's the email that was shown at the MUG meeting.
=-=
JJ

virividox · Feb 18, 2004, 10:38 AM

debt is a killer
at least we know apple wont be dying from debt if its true

pilzbury · Feb 18, 2004, 10:39 AM

Does this mean cheaper computers now? - That would be nice!

Nicky G · Feb 18, 2004, 10:43 AM

Heheh I wish I was debt-free -- between 3/4 of my car left to pay off, about $4K in credit card debt accumulated in college and my post-college summer non-employment period, and over $1K I owe my mom on my iBook G4 -- sometimes it really hits you. At least I don't have college loans, which means I am actually a bit _ahead_ of the game, compared to most other Americans my age with a college education. Kind of boggles the mind.

This is extremely positive news for Apple -- there is nothing held over this company's proverbial head. And with that much cash in the bank, they could literally weather a depressionary period, if things ever came to that. That's good for me, as I have decided to make Macintosh Technology the thrust of my career path for the time being. :-)

Ramza · Feb 18, 2004, 10:43 AM

great work, apple! very few large companies can pull off being debt free!

AirUncleP · Feb 18, 2004, 10:47 AM

Darn. Apple just missed out on buying AT&T Wireless and going right back into debt. The price tag was only....what....44 billion.

What's the interest income on 4.8 billion?

morkintosh · Feb 18, 2004, 10:47 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by carletonmusic
it will be interesting to see how investors look at this. Stock prices for Apple have never been all that great.

debt to equity ratio is just one of many factors that impact the value of stock. while its true that this can't hurt, that doesn't imply that it will help. in order to see a surge in stock value apple will need to hold on to the strong position they have in online music (possibly movie) distribution, maybe even aquire a record label. granted if they did that the beatles would be sure to have a negative impact on their stock.

bottom line: apple stock is not a major preformer because apple represents a very successful but niche company.

jwhitnah · Feb 18, 2004, 10:48 AM

Happy days!

NusuniAdmin · Feb 18, 2004, 10:48 AM

Cool. Come on new pmacs, come on!

agentmouthwash · Feb 18, 2004, 10:49 AM

This is great news for Apple. I'm doing my part helping them out by buying music from itunes and all my crap (wires, software) from my local Apple Store.

I want this company to be around. Hopefully this will reflect the stock price.

iggyb · Feb 18, 2004, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by yoman
now if only Apple would try to get us all in debt with new and incredible computers...

We're still waiting

Right there with ya!

wdlove · Feb 18, 2004, 11:01 AM

Congratulations to Steve and his management team for their leadership of Apple. This is trully a momenteous day, the ability to pay off $300 million in debt. Apple is now "Debt Free."

Ja Di ksw · Feb 18, 2004, 11:05 AM

I have to agree, people are (hopefully) going to be willing to buy more apple stock now that they are out of debt. I can see this raising the value of the stock overall, though I wouldn't go so far as to say that this will make the price will start jumping higher and higher now.

neilw · Feb 18, 2004, 11:05 AM

This has nice symbolic value, but has nothing do to with whether Apple is or was bleeding red ink or not. 300 million worth of debt is not a big deal when you've got 4-5 billion in the bank.

This also has absolutely zero impact on Apple's ability to deliver product, or spend more on R&D, or anything. That is why Jobs said a historic day "of sorts." So let's not get too excited here.

But it is nice anyway.

[aside: I wonder if and when Apple is going to do something significant with its huge cash cache. I know they are very protective of it, and that's fine, but at some point you'd think they could use it to their advantage, beyond just generating investment income.]

Feb 18, 2004, 10:24 AM	#1
MacRumors macrumors bot Join Date: Apr 2001	Apple is now Debt Free 99mac.se publishes an internal memo from Steve Jobs to Apple employees today. According to the Memo, Jobs states that "Today is a historic day of sorts for our company." Apple used $300 million in cash to pay off the rest of their debt, and is now a debt-free company. A big turnaround from over $1 billion in debt in mid-1997. Also noted in the memo is that Apple currently has $4.8 billion in the bank at this time.

Feb 18, 2004, 10:25 AM	#2
Messiatosh macrumors member Join Date: Jan 2004	Awesome! Bodes well for the future, here's to another nearly 30 years. __________________ "A great carpenter isnt going to use lousy wood for the back of a cabinet, even though nobody's going to see it."--Steve Jobs in reference to the Mac's internal component design

Feb 18, 2004, 10:26 AM	#3
yoman macrumors 6502a Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: In the Bowels of the Cosmos	good now if only Apple would try to get us all in debt with new and incredible computers... We're still waiting __________________ My first computer was an Apple IIGS at the meager age of 6 1/2 years. I was raised with an APPLE and I will die with an APPLE.

Feb 18, 2004, 10:28 AM	#4
Grimace Contributor Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: with Hamburglar.	it will be interesting to see how investors look at this. Stock prices for Apple have never been all that great. __________________ Canon 1Ds Mk III • Canon 5D MkII 16-35mm f/2.8L II • 24-70mm f/2.8L • 70-200mm f/2.8L IS 50mm f/1.2L • 85mm f/1.2L • 135mm f/2L • 300mm f/2.8L IS

Feb 18, 2004, 10:28 AM	#5
JJTiger1 macrumors regular Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: North America	Re: Apple is now Debt Free An internal Apple email from Steve Jobs says that Apple has paid off their $300 million debt. Apple is now debt free. The email was displayed last night at a MUG meeting by an Apple employee. The employee was thrilled. I would stay tuned to Apple news releases for confirmation. Not yet posted at http://www.apple.com/hotnews/ (Feb 18, 2004 05:57 AM PST) __________________ If you don't have a red Jeep, buy one or two!!

Feb 18, 2004, 10:34 AM	#7
russed macrumors 68000 Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: London, England	lets hope they spend even more money on R&D now and churn out even more products! __________________ all the ducks are swimming in the water...

Feb 18, 2004, 10:35 AM	#8
Nik_Doof macrumors regular Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Widnes, UK	All i gotta say is congrats to them, not alot of companies can pull off having no debt at all... __________________ Andrew D. Williams (Nik_Doof) nikdoof.net iPod 10gb // 12" Powerbook 1ghz // Airport Extreme I Switched To Mac On: 15th October 2003

Feb 18, 2004, 10:35 AM	#9
blueBomber macrumors regular Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Minneapolis, MN	this is great! While all the other computer companies struggle to turn a profit in the current market (Dell excluded), Apple is doing well. Looks like we may see another 20 years of Macintosh, even though Apple is perpetualy going out of business in the eyes of alot of people. __________________ "I am a ninja. My life is lonely and difficult." "Fry to the rain forest and save the nature!" "Yes Sir!" - a Neo Geo Classic

Feb 18, 2004, 10:35 AM	#10
guyute macrumors member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Iowa	Smart business move!!

Feb 18, 2004, 10:36 AM	#11
Mudbug macrumors god Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Northwest Louisiana	Holy crap that's a lot of money. Nice to see a corporation, regardless of who it is, stand up for itself and get in the black. Bleeding red ink is not a good way to be. This should help squelch the "Apple Death Knell" as it's come to be known. __________________ happy thankschrismahanakwaanzicasmasgiving.

Feb 18, 2004, 10:38 AM	#13
virividox macrumors 68040 Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Manila - Nottingham - Philadelphia - Santa Barbara - Boston (ugh hate not knowing where to call home)	debt is a killer at least we know apple wont be dying from debt if its true __________________ 17" MBP , 2 gig ram, 200 gig fw800 + 120 gig fw400 + 250 gig usb2 ext, 5g 80gig Ipod, Tiger d200 & d70

Feb 18, 2004, 10:39 AM	#14
pilzbury macrumors newbie Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Reading, Pa	Does this mean cheaper computers now? - That would be nice!

Feb 18, 2004, 10:43 AM	#15
Nicky G macrumors regular Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Baltimore, Maryland, USA	Heheh I wish I was debt-free -- between 3/4 of my car left to pay off, about $4K in credit card debt accumulated in college and my post-college summer non-employment period, and over $1K I owe my mom on my iBook G4 -- sometimes it really hits you. At least I don't have college loans, which means I am actually a bit _ahead_ of the game, compared to most other Americans my age with a college education. Kind of boggles the mind. This is extremely positive news for Apple -- there is nothing held over this company's proverbial head. And with that much cash in the bank, they could literally weather a depressionary period, if things ever came to that. That's good for me, as I have decided to make Macintosh Technology the thrust of my career path for the time being. :-)

Feb 18, 2004, 10:43 AM	#16
Ramza macrumors newbie Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Winnipeg, Canada	great work, apple! very few large companies can pull off being debt free!

Feb 18, 2004, 10:47 AM	#17
AirUncleP macrumors regular Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: USA	Darn. Apple just missed out on buying AT&T Wireless and going right back into debt. The price tag was only....what....44 billion. What's the interest income on 4.8 billion? __________________ plaid pants......and an argyal sweater......No he's not retarded! McToast gets it.......do you?

Feb 18, 2004, 10:48 AM	#19
jwhitnah macrumors regular Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: WA	Happy days!

Feb 18, 2004, 10:48 AM	#20
NusuniAdmin Guest Join Date: Nov 2003	hmmmmmm cool..... Cool. Come on new pmacs, come on!

Feb 18, 2004, 10:49 AM	#21
agentmouthwash macrumors regular Join Date: Aug 2003	This is great news for Apple. I'm doing my part helping them out by buying music from itunes and all my crap (wires, software) from my local Apple Store. I want this company to be around. Hopefully this will reflect the stock price.

Feb 18, 2004, 11:01 AM	#23
wdlove macrumors 604 Join Date: Oct 2002	Congratulations to Steve and his management team for their leadership of Apple. This is trully a momenteous day, the ability to pay off $300 million in debt. Apple is now "Debt Free." __________________ First MacRumors "Contributor"

Feb 18, 2004, 11:05 AM	#24
Ja Di ksw macrumors 65816 Join Date: Apr 2003	I have to agree, people are (hopefully) going to be willing to buy more apple stock now that they are out of debt. I can see this raising the value of the stock overall, though I wouldn't go so far as to say that this will make the price will start jumping higher and higher now. __________________ Fetch Daddy's blue fright wig! I must be handsome when I unleash my rage.

Feb 18, 2004, 11:05 AM	#25
neilw macrumors member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: New Jersey	This has nice symbolic value, but has nothing do to with whether Apple is or was bleeding red ink or not. 300 million worth of debt is not a big deal when you've got 4-5 billion in the bank. This also has absolutely zero impact on Apple's ability to deliver product, or spend more on R&D, or anything. That is why Jobs said a historic day "of sorts." So let's not get too excited here. But it is nice anyway. [aside: I wonder if and when Apple is going to do something significant with its huge cash cache. I know they are very protective of it, and that's fine, but at some point you'd think they could use it to their advantage, beyond just generating investment income.]

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