Apple Shareholder Meeting: No Dividend or Stock Split, Majority Vote Requirement for Directors
Apple's annual shareholder meeting has just concluded at its headquarters in Cupertino, California, with the company declining to make any major announcements related to its operations. One of the biggest questions on the stock side has been speculation about a dividend, buyback, or stock split, and while Apple has indicated that it is continually evaluating the best uses for its cash stockpile, the company has not decided to adopt any of those strategies so far.
CNBC posted a live blog of the meeting, outlining the formal agenda, brief statements from Tim Cook, and a brief Q&A session with shareholders. One change the company did announce is its adoption of a measure that will require members of Apple's board of directors to obtain majority votes from shareholders in order to be elected. The company had previously operated under a plurality vote standard in which directors need to obtain only a majority of the votes cast, omitting those who failed to vote their shares. Under the new policy, directors who do not receive a majority of outstanding voting shares will voluntarily step down. All current directors were easily re-elected.
Majority voting has increasingly become the standard among major companies, and major shareholders have been attempting to push Apple in that direction for several years. A non-binding proposal from shareholders on the topic was approved last year, but Apple declined to adopt it. The proposal was set to be revisited at this year's meeting, and while Apple opposed it in its proxy materials sent to shareholders, the company agreed to implement it even before today's vote results were released.
Tim Cook faced several other questions from shareholders today, touching on topics such as Apple's commitment to education and the company's lack of interest in owning music labels or television studios. Other topics included Apple's advertising on controversial television shows, its relationship with Facebook (Cook called Facebook a "friend"), and the possibility of an Apple television set (no comment from Cook).
Popular Stories
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps.
Unfortunately, this feature continues to roll out very slowly since it was announced in 2021, with only nine U.S. states, Puerto Rico,...
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 series in two months, and the iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to get a new design for the rear casing and the camera area. But more significant changes to the lineup are not expected until next year, when the iPhone 18 models arrive.
If you're thinking of trading in your iPhone for this year's latest, consider the following features rumored to be coming...
Since the iPhone X in 2017, all of Apple's highest-end iPhone models have featured either stainless steel or titanium frames, but it has now been rumored that this design decision will be coming to an end with the iPhone 17 Pro models later this year.
In a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo today, the account Instant Digital said that the iPhone 17 Pro models will have an aluminum...
Three out of four iPhone 17 models will feature more RAM than the equivalent iPhone 16 models, according to a new leak that aligns with previous rumors.
The all-new iPhone 17 Air, the iPhone 17 Pro, and the iPhone 17 Pro Max will each be equipped with 12GB of RAM, according to Fixed Focus Digital, an account with more than two million followers on Chinese social media platform Weibo. The...
Apple is expanding the ability to add an Apple Account Card to the Wallet app to more countries, according to backend Apple Pay changes.
With iOS 15.5, Apple updated the Wallet app to allow users to add an Apple Account Card, which displays the Apple credit balance associated with an Apple ID.
If you receive an Apple gift card, for example, it is added to an Apple Account that is also...
Apple does not plan to refresh any Macs with updated M5 chips in 2025, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Updated MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models are now planned for the first half of 2026.
Gurman previously said that Apple would debut the M5 MacBook Pro models in late 2025, but his newest report suggests that Apple is "considering" pushing them back to 2026. Apple is now said to be...
Apple is continuing to refine and update iOS 26, and beta three features smaller changes than we saw in beta 2, plus further tweaks to the Liquid Glass design. Apple is gearing up for the next phase of beta testing, and the company has promised that a public beta is set to come out in July.
Transparency
In some apps like Apple Music, Podcasts, and the App Store, Apple has toned down the...
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, did you know that Apple offers you five perks beyond the extra storage space, at no additional cost?
Here are the perks included with all iCloud+ plans:Private Relay keeps your Safari browsing history entirely private from network providers, websites, and even Apple.
Hide My Email generates unique, random email addresses whenever needed.
Hom...