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发帖数: 16371 | 1 Shares of Apple (AAPL) are up $12.84, or 2.5%, at $522.30 this morning after
an appearance yesterday afternoon by chief executive Tim Cook yesterday at
the Goldman Sachs technology conference, where he was interviewed by Goldman
hardware analyst Bill Shope.
The takeaway is that Cook’s remarks on the prospect of a dividend ? he didn
’t commit to anything but indicated a willingness to consider all options ?
and his discussion of the AppleTV product, are tantalizing hints at future
actions.
For his part, Shope, who has a Buy rating on Apple shares and a $600 price
target, in a note to clients this morning, writes, “We viewed the
presentation as a positive catalyst for the stock […] The company appeared
remarkably confident in its incremental growth opportunities, and management
seemed increasingly willing to explore a dividend or buyback.”
Shope went through each of the points brought up in the discussion:
“Product innovation remans the core strategy and the company remains
focused on making a select few products”
Mr. Cook noted that supplier relationships and employee working
conditions remain an area that the company will continue to aggressively
monitor, and the company will remain transparent about any violations it
uncovers
With only a 24% share of the smartphone market and less than 9% of the
handset market (in a peak seasonal quarter), Apple stressed that the size of
the mobility market can field far more growth.
Emerging market growth is taking off beyond the iPhone because of the “
halo effect” from the iPhone, driving Mac and iPad sales.
Mr. Cook continues to believe that the tablet market will ultimately
exceed the size of the PC market.
Siri and iCloud are “profound platform enhancements” and “Siri has
proven to be a significant factor in driving adoption of the new iPhone 4S.”
“Pointing to the company’s historic judicious and deliberate use of
cash, Mr. Cook asked for investor patience as the company decides on what is
in the best interest of shareholders.”
Regarding the discussion of AppleTV, Shope reiterated his own view that
Apple “may be preparing to introduce a television in late 2012, early 2013
″ given that “Mr. Cook hinted that they would need something more to go
after this market more aggressively.”
R.W. Baird’s William Power, who has an Outperform rating on Apple, raised
his price target to $600 from $550, “on what we continue to view as an
attractive valuation and, in our view, the increased likelihood of a
dividend.”
Apple’s CEO Tim Cook indicated that the board of directors continues to
focus more time on the use of cash, which seems to increase the likelihood
of a dividend and/or stock buyback. We continue to believe that even a
conservative 2% dividend yield could help attract an additional wave of
investors.
Jefferies & Co.’s Peter Misek, who has a Buy rating on Apple shares and a $
599 price target, writes that “Tim Cook hinted that a bigger successor to
the Apple TV is coming.”
“Also, he noted that capital allocation plans are actively being discussed.
We continue to expect a dividend announcement later this year.”
Regarding the dividend, Misek elaborates:
On the dividend front Cook asked for time as the company likes to approach
its capital allocation decisions “judiciously.” We believe it confirms our
suspicion that a dividend is coming in H2:CY12.
(zz from barron's) |
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