Tim Cook turns down £50m Apple dividend
The Apple CEO has chosen to forego a huge dividend to which he's entitled.
Apple's CEO Tim Cook has decided to forego a payout of $75 million (£50 million) to which he's entitled. The dividend is part of a deal with all employees, entitling them to a $2.65-a-share quarterly payout on restricted stock units, AllThingsD reports. But Cookie said no.
"At Mr Cook's request, none of his restricted stock units will participate in dividend equivalents," reads Apple's 8-K report. "Assuming a quarterly dividend of $2.65 per share over the vesting periods of his 1.125 million outstanding restricted stock units, Mr Cook will forego approximately $75 million in dividend equivalent value." How the other half live.
The move is likely to win Cook even more fans. It was his decision to make a charitable matching programme for employees, as well as granting the dividends for shareholders. The gesture is likely to boost Apple's share value, as well as engender loyalty among employees.
Cook was awarded an extra million shares when he took over from Steve Jobs last year. The consensus is that he's done a great job leading Apple in the last few months, handling himself well on stage and in times of criticism for the company, as well as overseeing successful product launches. Indeed, Apple looks set to become the world's first trillion dollar company so Cook won't be short of a bob or two.
However, the real test will start next year. Steve Jobs is believed to have worked on the iPhone 5, which is expected to launch at the end of the year. It's only when completely free from Jobs' influence that we'll see what Cook can really do with Apple and the products it produces.
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