CNBC has published a new report that highlights recent job listings from Apple and what they could mean for future products. Specifically, the report cites three job listings from this summer that relate to sensor processors and fitness sensors, which CNBC believes could hint at a future chip dedicated to processing data from health sensors like on Apple Watch.
[UPDATE: Interview preview below…]
CNBC has announced that it will have an exclusive interview with Apple CEO Tim Cook tonight on Mad Money with Jim Cramer. The sit down interview will air at 6pm ET and follows yesterday’s quarterly earnings report.
[UPDATE: Video below.]
As expected, Apple CEO Tim Cook this evening appeared on CNBC’s Mad Money with Jim Cramer to discuss the recent news surrounding the company’s second quarter earnings results. The company reported $50.6 billion in revenue and $10 billion in profits, but its stock was sent into spiral. Speaking to Cramer, however, Cook defended Apple’s future and called Wall Street’s response a “huge overreaction.”
Following Apple’s earnings report yesterday, where it recorded its first quarterly revenue decline since 2003, CNBC spoke with 9to5Mac’s Benjamin Mayo about Apple’s potential future products and revenue streams. Benjamin discusses Apple’s expanding Services sector including Apple Music, the realities of Apple Watch growth possibilities, and more.
The email Apple CEO Tim Cook sent to CNBC analyst Jim Cramer, and which was read on the air, may have violated Securities and Exchange Commission regulations, according to lawyers speaking to MarketWatch. The regulations are designed to ensure that information that may impact a company’s share price is made available to the public in a fair and open way, rather than privately disclosed to particular individuals or entities.
Cook’s email revealed that the growth in iPhone activations “has actually accelerated over the past few weeks, and we have had the best performance of the year for the App Store in China during the last 2 weeks” – information that Apple had not previously disclosed …
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Cook surprised Cramer on his 10th anniversary episode of Mad Money earlier this year.
Although the stock market is currently experiencing turbulence, with $AAPL stock dipping below $100 in pre-market trading, Tim Cook has made a rare exception and directly responded to CNBC analyst Jim Cramer who raised doubts about Apple’s Chinese growth. Cook notes that Apple has seen strong business growth for its products in China though July and August. Quoting from the email via CNBC:
Growth in iPhone activations has actually accelerated over the past few weeks, and we have had the best performance of the year for the App Store in China during the last 2 weeks.
This morning, our Senior Editor Mark Gurman went live on CNBC to discuss the conflicting Apple Music survey and usage numbers in addition to the next-generation Apple TV. You can watch both clips below.
In case you missed it, Mark appeared on CNBC’s “Squawk Alley” earlier today to discuss the leaked iPhone 6S, its numerous changes, and its new Qualcomm chip and double LTE speeds, plus this week’s launch of Apple Music and Beats 1 and what to expect for the future of Apple’s new streaming music service. Watch below:
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Mark discussing his recent scoops including split-screen apps and the upcoming 12-inch iPad on CNBC today following this week’s exclusives on the Apple Watch’s San Francisco font coming to iOS and OS X, Apple’s plans for a ‘Home’ app to manage HomeKit on iOS, Apple Maps transit and indoor mapping plans, and features coming to iOS 9 and OS X 10.11.
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In a **totally unscripted surprise** call to celebrate Mad Money stock analyst Jim Cramer’s 10th year on the air, Apple CEO Tim Cook let loose a slew of compliments to the analyst who has had a controversial past with AAPL stock trading.
Unusually good questions from CNBC and as always great insight from Mark.
As we reported earlier this week, often reliable KGI is predicting that Apple will bring its in-house designed A-series processor to an entry-level Mac sometime in 2016 with TSMC and Samsung expected to fab the potential A9X and A10X chips, respectively. As the move to put non-Intel chips in the Mac lineup would be a departure for the company, CNBC asked Intel CEO Brian Krzanich about the chip-maker’s business plans with Apple…
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[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_AAM1P-kqFs&feature=youtu.be&list=PLDt0J62yU45s8IgsEx5xPHDIH78IczAxs]
After publishing an open letter to Tim Cook earlier today once again requesting Apple to increase its share buyback program, high-profile investor and Apple shareholder Carl Icahn went on CNBC for an interview to discuss the specifics. Icahn and associates not only discuss the proposal requesting Apple make a tender offer for a larger buyback of shares, but also some of Icahn’s other forecasts and his statement that Apple should be trading at $203 per share, which would put the company at a value somewhere in the neighbourhood of $1 trillion making it the first to do so.
In his letter, Icahn said “our forecasted growth for FY 2016 and FY 2017 more than adequately justifies using a P/E multiple of 19x our FY 2015 forecast, which along with net cash values Apple at $203 per share today.” In addition, Icahn offers some bold predictions in forecasts for yet to be announced product lines including claiming a 4K Apple TV set should arrive for around $1500 in 55-inch and 65-inch variants by 2016. Also factored into his forecast is Apple’s upcoming Apple Watch smartwatch, which he expects to sell “20 million units in FY 2015, 45 million units in FY 2016, 72.5 million units in 2017.”
Apple quickly issued a response to Icahn’s letter today saying it would review its stock repurchase program annually and “take into account the input from all of our shareholders.”
Apple has officially issued a statement regarding the iPhone 6 bending controversy saying the issue is rare during real world use and that it’s only received complaints from 9 customers (via CNBC). Apple adds, according to the reports, that the “new iPhones feature steel/titanium inserts to reinforce stress locations and use the strongest glass in the industry.” Apple also commented that bending is “extremely rare” during normal use and that it performs a number of strength and durability tests (as you’d expect) before it ships new devices (via WSJ):
Since going on sale Friday, Apple said only nine customers have contacted the company about a bent iPhone 6 Plus—the larger and more expensive of its two new iPhones. Apple said both the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus passed a series of tests meant to check the products’ strength and durability to withstand every day, real-life use.
iPhone smuggling into China is nothing new, but this year it has perhaps been even more of a problem as Apple awaits regulatory approvals to begin selling its new iPhone models in the country. The good news is that a report from CNBC notes that regulators in the country said today that final reviews of licenses for the new iPhones would be “completed soon”.
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Apple has rolled out some new channel additions to the Apple TV set-top box this morning. Both FOX NOW and CNBC have joined the Apple TV lineup. Both channels appear to require a cable subscription to unlock the content within. However, some episodes and clips are available without providing subscription credentials.
The CNBC channel supports viewing live broadcasts from the business-focused station as well as viewing previously aired shows and content. The FOX NOW channel features popular shows from the network like American Idol, Glee, Family Guy, The Following, and more.
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CNBC reports that Apple has hired the sales director of luxury Swiss watch maker TAG Heuer for an iWatch marketing role. The hire was reportedly confirmed by the head of the parent company’s watch brands, Jean-Claude Biver.
Biver said the watchmaker’s sales director left as recently as last week, “to take a contract with Apple” in order to launch the iWatch. LVMH owns Swiss watchmakers TAG Heuer, Hublot and Zenith …
Steve Jobs has been ranked #1 in CNBC’s First 25: Rebels, Icons & Leaders, described as “a definitive list of people who have had the greatest influence, sparked the biggest changes and created the most disruption in business over the past quarter century.”
Steve Jobs earned the top spot for both transforming the way we think about technology and redefining the style in which we live […]
More than any other member of our group of extraordinary entrepreneurs and executives—all outstanding leaders—his vision spurred changes far beyond his industry and put an indelible stamp on the wider culture …
Today marked the debut of former WSJ Apple reporter Yukari Iwatani Kane’s book “Haunted Empire: Apple After Steve Jobs” (review from this morning) and Tim Cook is not pleased.
The Apple CEO told CNBC the following:
This nonsense belongs with some of the other books I’ve read about Apple. It fails to capture Apple, Steve, or anyone else in the company. Apple has over 85,000 employees that come to work each day to do their best work, to create the world’s best products, to put their mark in the universe and leave it better than they found it. This has been the heart of Apple from day one and will remain at the heart for decades to come. I am very confident about our future.
Update: Re/Code’s telling of the email sent by Apple has an additional sentence:
“We’ve always had many doubters in our history,” he said in the e-mail. “They only make us stronger.”
Yukari Kane also responded to Re/Code:
“For Tim Cook to have such strong feelings about the book, it must have touched a nerve,” Kane said. “Even I was surprised by my conclusions, so I understand the sentiment. I’m happy to speak with him or anyone at Apple in public or private. My hope in writing this book was to be thought-provoking and to start a conversation which I’m glad it has.”
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Icahn: I had a ‘good conversation’ with Tim Cook; we both believe Apple is undervalued.
Previously, Icahn urged Cook for a $150 billion buyback and Apple Senior VP Eddy Cue oddly Tweeted “carl ichan” a few days ago before deleting the Tweet.
Fortune ran a couple of pieces showing what happened to Apple’s stock price after investor Carl Icahn’s tweets, with his initial announcement that he had taken a “large position” in AAPL, followed by news that he’d had a “nice conversation” with Apple CEO Tim Cook – and a subsequent tweet yesterday that he’d “pushed hard for a 150 billion buyback” over a “cordial dinner.”
The total effect? A jump in Apple’s valuation totalling around $23B – or approaching a cool $8B per tweet.
Would be nice to know when he’s about to tweet, eh?
Photo: Huffington Post
After taking an undisclosed “large position” in Apple last month, rumored to be in excess of $1B, prominent investor Carl Icahn said he thinks Apple and CEO Tim Cook should do a larger buyback. Now, following a scheduled meeting with Tim Cook in New York yesterday, Icahn says he “pushed hard for a 150 billion buyback” during a “cordial dinner”:
Had a cordial dinner with Tim last night. We pushed hard for a 150 billion buyback. We decided to continue dialogue in about three weeks.
— Carl Icahn (@Carl_C_Icahn) October 1, 2013
While Apple announced earlier this year that it would return around $100 billion to shareholders by the end of 2015 as part of its $60 billion buyback program and increased dividend, Icahn previously told Reuters he thinks Apple is capable of doing a $150 billion buyback by borrowing the money at 3 percent:
“If Apple does this now and earnings increase at only 10 percent, the stock – even keeping the same multiple currently – should trade at $700 a share,” Icahn said in a phone interview. Apple has “huge borrowing power, little relative debt and trades at a low multiple.”
As noted in his tweet above, Icahn says he will resume talks with Cook regarding the buyback in three weeks.
Update: we’ve embedded the CEO’s conversations on video to CNBC below:
Icahn: "CFO got a little bit testy"
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) October 1, 2013
Icahn will need a really big "highly confident letter" from Jefferies for an AAPL LBO
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) October 1, 2013
Icahn's chef made dinner for him and Cook … won't talk about the menu though!
— Julianne Pepitone (@julpepitone) October 1, 2013
https://twitter.com/tim/status/385077459105751041
[tweet https://twitter.com/zerohedge/status/217362407469748224]
Update: A report from Bloomberg Businessweek confirmed with some clarification. As we reported in April, the ITC will have to review Judge Pender’s previous ruling that Apple infringed on one Motorola patent related to industry standard 3G and wireless technologies. The date for that hearing is now scheduled for August 24 and could result on a block of iOS devices from Asia to the United States:
The U.S. International Trade Commission said it will review ITC Judge Thomas Pender’s findings that Apple was violating one of four Motorola Mobility patents. The commission is scheduled to issue a final decision on Aug. 24, and has the power to block devices made in Asia from entering the U.S.
According to several tweets from financial analyst @zerohedge, Google is apparently attempting to block shipments of the iPhone and iPad in the U.S. related to 3G patents. We do not have any more information at the moment, but we will keep you updated as the story unfolds…
[tweet https://twitter.com/zerohedge/status/217362478374457345]
CNBC reported a Reuters story of the same nature.
[tweet https://twitter.com/CNBC/status/217364425290686464]
(Developing)
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According to a study from CNBC’s All-America Economic Survey, 50 percent of all households in the United States are home to at least one Apple product. To put that in perspective, over 55 million homes have at least one iPod, iPhone, iPad, or Mac, with an average of 1.6 Apple products per household. Of those 50 percent, close to one-quarter plan to buy another Apple device in the coming year, while 1-in-10 households that do not currently own an Apple product will make the leap during 2012…
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