Apple Announces $30bn Share Buyback and 8% Dividend Boost to Please Investors

IPhone maker Apple has undertaken a number of moves to please its investors as the company reported better-than-expected profits for the fiscal second quarter.

The company allocated a further $30bn (£17.85bn, €21.7bn) in share buybacks until the end of 2015 and authorised a seven-for-one stock split effective in June. In addition, it boosted quarterly dividend by 8% to $3.29 per share.

Apple noted that it will source the share buyback programme from borrowings.

"To assist in funding the program, the company expects to access the public debt markets during 2014, both domestically and internationally, for an amount of term debt similar to what the company raised during 2013. The management team and the board of directors will continue to review each element of the capital return program regularly," the company said.

Apple has been under pressure from its investors like Carl Icahn to boost its share buyback programme. Icahn was sanguine about the company in tweets:

For the quarter ended in March, the company reported sales of 43.7 million iPhones, above analysts' expectations for about 38 million. However, iPad sales declined to 16.35 million from 19.5 million last year.

Total revenues increased 4.6% to $45.6m, beating analysts' expectations of about $43.5bn.

Looking ahead to the next quarter, the company expects revenues in the range of $36-38bn against $35bn last year.

Apple shares rose 7% in after hours as investors quickly responded to the announcements. The shares fell by 5.2% this year, down 24% from their September 2012 all-time high, amid investor concerns about the company's future.

CEO Tim Cook is now facing pressure to introduce a new hit product in a fiercely competitive and near-saturated mobile devices market.

Apple's fortune came from its iconic products such as iPod and iPhone. It faces stiff competition from mobile devices based on Google's Android operating system.