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Carl Icahn will pressure Apple shareholders to vote for stock buyback

Carl Icahn will pressure Apple shareholders to vote for stock buyback

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Apple earnings money cash
Apple earnings money cash

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn hasn't exactly been quiet about his view on Apple's huge stockpile of cash — he's been pressuring CEO Tim Cook for a $150 billion stock buyback to put money back in the hands of shareholders for months now. Now, Icahn's taking his battle straight to the shareholders themselves. According to a report from Time, Icahn has filed a shareholder proposal for a stock buyback that will be voted on at the company's next annual shareholder meeting. His proposal is known as a "precatory proposal," which means that even if shareholders vote to approve it, Apple's management won't be bound to carry it out. While there aren't any details on what exactly his proposal calls for, it's safe to assume it's along the same lines as his previous pleas for a large stock buyback — something that would likely benefit Icahn's major holdings in Apple.

Still, it's definitely a new bit of pressure on Apple from Icahn — if he can get shareholders on his side, Apple will have to respond in some fashion. Despite Icahn's continued calls for the buyback, he still insists he thinks Apple is running its business properly — he just wants to see the company share its wealth. "Apple is not a bank," he told Time. "I'm not against the management of this company. But they've got too much money on their balance sheet." He also claims his relationship with Cook continues to be amicable, despite the fact that he's now enlisting shareholder help for getting his proposal pushed through. "Tim Cook is doing a good job with the business," Icahn said. "I think he's good whether he does what I want or not."

Update: According to The Wall Street Journal, Icahn's shareholder proposal will be for a smaller stock buyback than he originally demanded. Icahn reportedly wants Apple to repurchase $50 billion by September on top of the $60 billion Cupertino has already pledged.