Apple hit with another investor lawsuit
Following a similar move by a hedge fund manager, a Pennsylvania man is suing to stop Apple from eliminating preferred stock and over how the company decides on its executives' pay.
Looks like there's a second act for Apple's "silly sideshow."
Another Apple shareholder is suing Apple, Reuters reported today. This time, it's over Apple's executive compensation policy, in addition to the company's intent to eliminate preferred stock for investors.
Pennsylvania resident Brian Gralnick has filed suit against Apple in an attempt to stop Apple from holding a shareholder vote on the two matters. The vote is scheduled for February 27. Gralnick has been a shareholder since 2007, but it's unclear how much of a stake in Apple he owns.
We've contacted Apple for comment and will update when we hear back.
One focus of the suit -- Apple's proposal to eliminate preferred stocks-- is the same proposal targeted in a suit from hedge fund manager David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital. Greenlight filed suit earlier this month in an effort to get Apple to share more of its massive cash reserves with investors.
The other focus of the suit, which is not included in the Greenlight suit, is Apple investors' ability to weigh in on executives' pay. Gralnick is accusing Apple of not releasing details about how it determines how much its top executives make. He plans to show up at the Greenlight suit's hearing on February 19 and "seek to be heard," his lawyer told Reuters.
Greenlight's case has cased quite a stir for the Cupertino, Calif., company, prompting Apple CEO Tim Cook yesterday to call the lawsuit a "silly sideshow," and a waste of time and money.