14 DAY TRIAL // After releasing the numbers for fiscal Q2 2013, Apple’s Board of Directors released a statement confirming the board’s decision to authorize a significant increase to program to return capital to shareholders.
Per the decision, $100 billion / €76.9 billion will be utilized under the expanded program by the end of 2015, which represents a $55 billion / €42.2 billion increase to the program announced last year, Apple said.
This translates into an average rate of $30 billion / €23 billion per year and, as part of the program, the Board has increased its share repurchase authorization to $60 billion / €46.1 (from last year’s $10 billion / €7.7 billion).
“This is the largest single share repurchase authorization in history and is expected to be executed by the end of calendar 2015,” Apple said.
In order to net-share-settle vesting restricted stock units, the company also expects to utilize about $1 billion / €770 million every year.
Furthermore, the board has approved a 15% increase in the quarterly dividend: $3.05 (€2.35) per common share, payable on May 16, 2013.
Following these amendments, Apple is now one of the largest dividend payers in the world, with annual payments of around $11 billion / €8.46 billion.
“In conjunction with the expanded return of capital program, the Company plans to borrow and expects to announce more details about this in the near future,” Apple said.
The company’s Board of Directors will work closely with the management team “to review each element of the capital return program on an annual basis,” the statement adds.
“We will continue to return capital to shareholders through dividends, share repurchases, and cash used to net-share-settle vesting RSUs,” said Peter Oppenheimer, Apple’s CFO.
Tim Cook, the CEO, added, “We are very fortunate to be in a position to more than double the size of the capital return program we announced last year.”
“We believe so strongly that repurchasing our shares represents an attractive use of our capital that we have dedicated the vast majority of the increase in our capital return program to share repurchases,” Cook said.