Marc,
Yes, the way I remember it, $300 million was the most commonly bandied-about number, although the pessimists theorized lower ($150-$200 million) and of course there were a couple "outrageous optimists" who claimed numbers closer to $1 billion. All, of course, claimed to have gotten their info through "inside sources". But if anyone out there is a betting person, $300 million would probably be your best bet.
I suppose they would have to account for this somewhere in their SEC filing, but perhaps not explicitly. Could it perhaps be factored into revenues somehow?
The only reason I'm curious is because I've noticed the runup in Apple's cash position (from $1.35 to $1.6 billion last reported quarter). That's a one-quarter runup of $250 million, and they only made a $47 million profit. Do you think they gained $200 million in investments alone? To my knowledge, they didn't sell anything last quarter. I suppose they could have made that much on investments, and perhaps I'm underestimating that potential. Anyway, just curious to know whether the Microsoft deal could be contributing.
Paul Arthur |
