Apple may be vulnerable to a takeover. And a bid would bring alot of strengths to the acquiror.
There is the market cap of some $4bn, not much for a global player and a global icon especially given the abundance of investment banking capital around.
Also, Apple's cost structure has been cleaned, its product line has been refocused, its marketing re-animated, its working capital management improved.
What really impresses me, in addition, is the balance sheet: $14/share in cash and readily marketable securities and more than $6/share in net cash, after debt is deducted. Plus the Microsoft settlement money of $200 m (or whatever the exact sum) helps with cash flow, to further reduce an acquiror's borrowing costs.
So when I think about the benefits of the tax credits,ie the NOL carryforwards, and the publicity which an acquisition attempt would generate around the world, we are into a serious potential for a takeover, whatever the premium - whether 30% above market cap or 40% which tends to be the average. |
