Carl Icahn Abandons Push for Apple to Boost Stock Buyback

[imageWIS]

Apple will make a special product just for him: the iCon.

 

[TallManNY]

In round numbers, they are looking at around $1B a week in free cash. Given that Apple is going to avoid repatriating overseas retained earnings (hoping against hope for a tax holiday?), it will be essentially impossible for them to keep the horde from growing further. I'm wondering how long they can continue to use the taxes excuse for allowing the cash to accumulate outside of the U.S. Maybe they are planning on buying a small country. Is Lichtenstein for sale?

As long as a tax holiday is politically plausible, it makes sense to hold back and hope for the functional economic equivalent of a grand slam home run. A tax holiday for Apple would be huge. And a Republican Congress (which, while unlikely, is feasible after the next election) might pass such a tax break for big business.

 

[IJ Reilly]

As long as a tax holiday is politically plausible, it makes sense to hold back and hope for the functional economic equivalent of a grand slam home run. A tax holiday for Apple would be huge. And a Republican Congress (which, while unlikely, is feasible after the next election) might pass such a tax break for big business.

Without delving too deeply into the politics, I believe a blanket tax holiday, even if it passed Congress, would be vetoed by the President. The idea has always been that any kind of tax amnesty or lowering the corporate tax rates would have to be part of a larger "tax reform" bill, and I'd expect the White House to hold to that position.

It would be windfall for Apple and other corporations for sure, but if it happened, in a way would only sharpen the question of why they are hanging onto so much cash.

 

[PROF FAART]

Apple will make a special product just for him: the iCon.

Haha.