You’d be going out on a pretty brittle limb to consider me any type of expert, hobbyist, or even amateur financial advisor, but an article on the Motley Fool recently caught my eye. It considered the fallout, or as it would argue, lack thereof, surrounding the “Apple Stock Options Backdating Scandal” (if I could convey the effect of a grand echo after typing that, I would).
Rich Duprey questions the loyalty to Steve Jobs that seems to be in full effect on the part of Apple’s shareholders. After all, he did take part in actions that took money from stockholders and gave it to Apple employees, presumably in hopes that it would increase productivity and profitability (which I thought was the reasoning behind buying stock in a company in the first place).
My clue-lacking take on the matter is that if Steve Jobs thinks that his employees need more compensation, he should probably take the established protocol to do so. With that being said, this isn’t Enron, and nobody lost their life savings. Stockholders want the company to succeed. Well-compensated employees are crucial in accomplishing this.
Apple’s stockholders, the ones that Rich Duprey is fighting for, are perfectly happy with Steve Jobs in power because he is most likely to make them money. You don’t cut open the hen that laid the golden eggs, and you don’t take shots at it with a BB gun just because it lays a brown one once in a while.
There’s my two cents. I’m sure you ladies and gents would be able to share a nickel or a dime, and I encourage you to please do so.
Apple stock would be worthless were it not for Steve Jobs, who has essentially saved the company and made it a massive success. Anyone who thinks that Jobs is not Apple's most valuable asset by far is severely confuzzled.
The very day Steve Job's leaves/retires from Apple, hopefully some very distant day when he turns 90, the entire company/stock worth will decrease. Just because. Period.
What bugs me about all this is that from the way it's getting reported you would think Apple is the only one that has these issues. The fact that over a hundred silicon valley companies followed the same practice needs to be mentioned a bit more often to keep this whole thing in perspective
"The probe by Apple found that not only was Jobs aware of the backdating that occurred at the company, but also intimately involved in selecting some of the dates at which an option was granted. That the committee investigating the matter absolved Jobs of any culpability seems a tad premature, if not silly. The SEC may reach a different conclusion, and you can be sure the trial lawyers will, particularly if it helps advance their case."
Don't forget, a Simi Valley jury found some LA cops innocent after beating Rodney King but we know how that ended.
Here's an interesting read too.
"While Hoopes remains bullish about Apple's prospects in 2007, based on accelerating Mac sales and the company's upcoming iTV digital lifestyle device, Apple faces legal threats beyond its options quagmire that may not be resolved in the company's favor.
Perhaps the most significant is a patent infringement claim, Apple Computer, Inc. v. Burst.com, Inc., that involves significant Apple hardware and software - iTunes Store and software, iPod devices, Final Cut Studio, GarageBand, iMovie, iDVD, iWeb, and Apple's .Mac service. Burst made similar claims against Microsoft and won a settlement in 2005. But Burst's lawsuit against Apple isn't scheduled for trial until February 26, 2008, leaving the lawyers time to work things out."
Jobs is an albatross around Apple's neck. He isn't the innovator and all the praise he gets for making money, not innovating, is maddening. Any Apple fan worth their salt would've seen the Apple movie that showed the people with the ideas that brought the Macs, iPods and software that we know.
BTW, this quote:
"...and the company faces shareholder lawsuits from the scandal."
Tells me that shareholders aren't happy.
Jobs an albatross? Ha! No, Jobs isn't the personal inventor of most of what Apple does, but he is the person who manages the innovation and makes the decisions that keep Apple on a winning track.
Apple in 1997 was a moribund company that had reached a dead end. Ten years later it owns the consumer music player market and the online media download market and is selling more Macs than ever before. That's ENTIRELY due to Steve Jobs' management. Not his invention prowess. His management, his leadership, and his brilliant skill in matching technological innovations with what regular people want.