As Promised, Activist Investor Carl Icahn Pens Open Letter To Apple CEO Tim Cook
Billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn penned an open letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook, and revealed it to the public this morning.
In the letter titled, "Sale: Apple Shares at Half Price," Icahn said that he believes Apple's stock price should be double than what it is now.
"Our valuation analysis tells us that Apple should trade at $203 per share today," he wrote. "We believe the disconnect between that price and today’s price reflects an undervaluation anomaly that will soon disappear."
[Related: Carl Icahn Teases Web With Plan To Reveal Open Letter To Apple CEO Tim Cook ]
Apple's stock price was at $100.80 per share at the close on Wednesday.
Icahn bases the suggested pricing off of projected fiscal year 2016 and 2017 earnings, when he said he sees earnings increasing by 30 percent. In fiscal year 2015, he said the sales and profit per share will be increasing by 25 percent and 44 percent.
He said Apple could increase share valuation by increasing the returns of the company's "persistently excessive liquidity" of $133 billion in net cash on Apple's balance sheet.
The chairman of Icahn Enterprises is one of Apple's largest shareholders with approximately 53 million shares.
In the letter, Icahn thanked Cook in the letter for "being receptive" last year, when Icahn urged Cook for a larger share buyback.
To downplay the idea that Icahn is being critical of the Apple CEO, he opened the letter by praising Cook for the job he's done since taking over the helm at Apple.
"We applaud you and the rest of management, especially in light of recent launches and announcements which further validate our view that you are the ideal CEO for Apple," Icahn wrote to Cook. "It is truly a watershed moment, with Apple poised to take market share from Google [Android] in the premium device market as iPhone 6 becomes Apple's flagship device among a growing collection of products and services that work together to form an increasingly dominant mobile ecosystem."
Icahn forecasts that Apple will do extremely well with the new products announced last month at the iPhone 6 launch event. He predicts the Apple Watch selling 20 million units in 2015, and sees the mobile ecosystem being "increasingly dominant" to Android.
"I think Apple has done a pretty good job managing themselves and their finances to the benefit of their shareholders," said Michael Oh, CEO of Tech Superpowers, an Apple partner based in Boston.
"He [Icahn] may be a significant shareholder, so he has his vision of how things should be done, but I put my trust with Apple. The fact that he's saying what he's saying, it says Apple has been doing the right thing in how they are doing business, and he sees the new product lines doing very well," Oh said. "The iPhone 6 is selling really well and that should continue, and Apple pay is going to take off when it hits. I think Carl sees that, and he is saying, 'Let's find a good way to split up the money.'"
Apple did not respond to a request for comment.
PUBLISHED OCT. 9, 2014