Apple has US$245 of gross cash and other things like long-term securities. It has US$115 billion in long-term debt. This makes its net cash position US$130 billion, and Apple CFO Luca Maestri has said eventually the company wants to have a net cash neutral position. Tiernan Ray writes about issues that may arise because of this.
Come 2023, will investors balk at an Apple suddenly less generous with its capital returns? And if Apple puts off that day as much as possible, plodding along with no significant increase in capital returns, will it lose the support of those fickle buyers hungry for shares with meaningful dividend buyback increases every year?
Check It Out: In 2023 Apple Wants to Have Zero Net Cash
Apple’s long-term debt, while only a portion of the total debt, is still long-term… with a 10-30 year term. In the meantime, Apple will make good use of the cash it’ll keep on hand to cover that.
So, really, this is a worry that either Apple’s dividends will stop its consistent 10% per year increase, or the share buybacks will end. Long-term investors may worry about the effects this has on AAPL’s (stock) growth prospects, but it will be far overshadowed by effects of Apple’s growth prospects in sales/services.