Hedge fund boss David Einhorn is suing Apple after its share price plunged by more than a third since September.
The boss of Greenlight Capital has accused Apple of having a “Depression-era mentality’ and wants it to unlock its $137bn cash holdings and release it to stockholders.
His lawsuit is aimed at plans by Apple, which has a current stock market value of $429.5bn, to stop it from issuing a type of high-yielding share which could pay out billions of dollars.
He urged Apple shareholders to vote against the plan at the company’s annual meeting on February 27, and spoke of his frustration in an open letter to shareholders.
Einhorn wrote: “We understand that many of our fellow shareholders share our frustration with Apple’s capital allocation policies.
“Apple has $145 per share of cash on its balance sheet. As a shareholder, this is your money.”
However Apple hit back at Einhorn’s claims saying his lawsuit was “misguided.”
The lawsuit is Apple’s first major challenge from an activist shareholder and comes as it has to deal with a falling share price and intense competition in both the smartphone and tablet markets.
Einhorn told CNBC: “[Apple] has sort of a mentality of a depression. In other words, people who have gone through traumas … and Apple has gone through a couple of traumas in its history, they sometimes feel like they can never have enough cash.”
Via: Daily Mail