Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) CEO Tim Cook and billionaire investor Carl Icahn will meet in New York City on September 30, reports Jay Yarow of Business Insider. Carl Icahn recently purchased Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares worth about $1.5 billion. He has been pushing the Cupertino-based company to boost its dividend and repurchase more shares.
During his dinner with the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) chief next week, Icahn is likely to discuss share buybacks. They may also discuss the upcoming products from Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s stable after the blockbuster success of the new iPhones launched last week. If Icahn succeeds in convincing Cook to repurchase more shares, that will be a windfall for Icahn Enterprises.
Apple extremely undervalued
Carl Icahn believes that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is extremely undervalued. Their meeting didn’t come as a surprise because last month Carl Icahn said through a tweet that he is going to arrange a dinner with the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) head. Carl Icahn tweeted last month:
“Spoke to Tim. Planning dinner in September. Tim believes in buyback and is doing one. What will be discussed is magnitude.”
Earlier this year, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) committed to spend $60 billion on share buybacks over the next three years. The company took the step to soothe shareholders, who were frustrated in the company’s falling stock prices. Last year, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s shares were trading above $700, which have fallen below $500 now.
Carl Icahn believes that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) stock could go as high as $700 per share. Icahn said that’s possible if the company borrows $150 billion at a 3 percent interest rate to finance the buyback. The billionaire investor calculates that if Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) does so and earnings rise only at 10 percent annual rate, the stock would trade above $700.
Last month, he told Reuters that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has a strong borrowing power and solid finances. So, it can easily raise $150 billion in debts at a 3 percent interest rate.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares jumped 1.34 percent to $488.13 at 10:10 AM EDT.
