Nice juicy Apple

　　新鮮多汁的蘋果

　　ALTHOUGH he is still stirring things up at Dell, an ailing computer-maker, Carl Icahn hasfound time to tilt at another tech titan. On August 13th the veteran shareholder activistrevealed that he had built up a stake in Apple, though he stayed mum about exactly howmany shares he had bought. Mr Icahns intentions, however, are crystal clear: he wants theconsumer-electronics behemoth to expand plans to return some of its whopping $147 billionof cash and marketable securities to shareholders.

　　盡管卡爾伊坎仍在陷入困境的電腦生產(chǎn)商戴爾公司攪和，他已經(jīng)抽出了時(shí)間力爭(zhēng)另一家科技巨頭。8月13日，這位積極的投資老手透露他已經(jīng)持有蘋果的股份，但是具體持有多少則避而不談。然而，伊坎先生的意圖很明確：他想要這家消費(fèi)電子產(chǎn)品巨頭擴(kuò)張計(jì)劃，將1470億美元市值里的部分資金以現(xiàn)金和有價(jià)證券的形式返還給股東。

　　Mr Icahn is also after more money at Dell, where he has been lobbying with allies against aproposed buy-out plan put forward by Michael Dell, the firms founder, and Silver Lake, aprivate-equity firm. His pressing has already forced the buy-out group to raise its initialoffer by over $350m, to $24.8 billion and he has taken his battle to the courts in a bid toextract an even higher price.

　　伊坎先生也仍在從戴爾公司爭(zhēng)取更多的錢，他正在游說(shuō)股東反對(duì)一起收購(gòu)。這項(xiàng)收購(gòu)計(jì)劃是由戴爾的創(chuàng)始人邁克爾戴爾和一家私募股權(quán)公司銀湖發(fā)起的。來(lái)自伊坎先生的壓力已經(jīng)使收購(gòu)方提高了3.5億美元的價(jià)格，使得收購(gòu)價(jià)達(dá)到了248億美元。他已經(jīng)將斗爭(zhēng)帶到了法庭，通過(guò)投標(biāo)爭(zhēng)取得到更多的錢。

　　Other tech firms have been attracting the attention of activist investors too. Earlier this yearValueAct Capital, an investment fund, said it had built up a $2 billion stake in Microsoft.Jaguar Financial, a Canadian bank, has been encouraging fresh thinking at troubledBlackBerry, which announced on August 12th that it is exploring various strategic options,including alliances and a possible sale. And Elliott Management, a hedge fund, has beenlobbying for change at NetApp, a data-storage firm that it thinks could do more to improvereturns to shareholders.

　　其他的科技公司也吸引了不少積極投資者的注意。今年早些時(shí)候，一個(gè)投資基金ValueAct Capital表示其持有了微軟公司20億美元的股份。加拿大銀行捷豹金融也鼓勵(lì)陷入危機(jī)的黑莓創(chuàng)新思維。今年8月12日，黑莓公司表示其正在探索戰(zhàn)略選擇，包括結(jié)盟和出售公司。一家對(duì)沖基金艾略特管理公司游說(shuō)數(shù)據(jù)存儲(chǔ)公司NetApp做出改變，該公司認(rèn)為NetApp能做出更多來(lái)提高股東的收益。

　　One reason tech firms have found themselves in activists crosshairs is that, like Apple, somebuilt up big cash piles during the economic downturn and have been slow to use the money.Financiers hope to get them to loosen their purse-strings faster and to pocket some of thecash. Mr Icahn wants Apple to increase and accelerate a share buy-back programme that iscurrently set to return $60 billion to shareholders by the end of 2023.

　　積極投資人瞄準(zhǔn)科技公司的一個(gè)原因是，很多科技公司跟蘋果一樣在經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退時(shí)擁有很大的現(xiàn)金流，但是資金利用不足。金融家希望他們放松自己的財(cái)政，放出更多的現(xiàn)金。伊坎先生想要蘋果增加并加速其股份回購(gòu)計(jì)劃。現(xiàn)在該計(jì)劃是截止到2023年末，蘋果公司返還600億美元給股東。

　　Another reason that tech firms make tempting targets for shareholder activists is that swiftchanges in technologies can trip up even the mightiest. Witness the case of Microsoft, whichruled the roost during the personal-computer era but has struggled to adapt to a world inwhich tablets and smartphones are all the rage. Investors hope to mint money by pushingcompanies to change more rapidly in response to such upheavals in their markets.

　　積極投資者瞄準(zhǔn)科技公司的另一個(gè)原因就是科技的日新月異甚至?xí)憧逍袠I(yè)巨頭。看一看微軟的例子，在個(gè)人電腦時(shí)期成壟斷之勢(shì)，而在平板電腦智能手機(jī)時(shí)代則處于苦苦掙扎的境地。投資者希望通過(guò)推動(dòng)公司做出更快改變適應(yīng)市場(chǎng)變化來(lái)掙得更多利潤(rùn)。

　　The rewards can be substantial. Egged on by Third Point, an activist hedge fund, Yahooappointed Marissa Mayer as its new chief executive in July 2023. By the time shecelebrated a year in the job last month, the troubled web giants share price had risen byover 70%. In July the hedge fund sold a big chunk of shares back to Yahoo. Mr Icahn thinksApples share price, which closed at $499 on August 14th, could soar too if the firm follows hisadvice on buy-backs. He tweeted this week that he had had a nice conversation with TimCook, Apples boss, about his idea, though he did not say what Mr Cook thought of it. If Appledrags its feet, expect things to turn nasty.

　　報(bào)酬是實(shí)質(zhì)性的。在活躍對(duì)沖基金第三點(diǎn)公司的慫恿之下，雅虎在2023年7月任命梅麗莎梅耶為新CEO。上個(gè)月她任職一年，這家陷入危機(jī)的互聯(lián)網(wǎng)巨頭股價(jià)上升了70%。7月，這家對(duì)沖基金回賣了一大筆股票給雅虎。伊坎先生認(rèn)為蘋果如果聽從他關(guān)于回購(gòu)的意見的話，其股價(jià)也能大漲。8月14日蘋果的股價(jià)為每股499美元。這周他發(fā)推表示他跟蘋果老板蒂姆庫(kù)克有一個(gè)很愉快的對(duì)話，盡管他沒(méi)有說(shuō)庫(kù)克對(duì)其建議的看法。如果蘋果一拖再拖的話，等著丑事兒發(fā)生吧。

　　Nice juicy Apple

　　新鮮多汁的蘋果

　　ALTHOUGH he is still stirring things up at Dell, an ailing computer-maker, Carl Icahn hasfound time to tilt at another tech titan. On August 13th the veteran shareholder activistrevealed that he had built up a stake in Apple, though he stayed mum about exactly howmany shares he had bought. Mr Icahns intentions, however, are crystal clear: he wants theconsumer-electronics behemoth to expand plans to return some of its whopping $147 billionof cash and marketable securities to shareholders.

　　盡管卡爾伊坎仍在陷入困境的電腦生產(chǎn)商戴爾公司攪和，他已經(jīng)抽出了時(shí)間力爭(zhēng)另一家科技巨頭。8月13日，這位積極的投資老手透露他已經(jīng)持有蘋果的股份，但是具體持有多少則避而不談。然而，伊坎先生的意圖很明確：他想要這家消費(fèi)電子產(chǎn)品巨頭擴(kuò)張計(jì)劃，將1470億美元市值里的部分資金以現(xiàn)金和有價(jià)證券的形式返還給股東。

　　Mr Icahn is also after more money at Dell, where he has been lobbying with allies against aproposed buy-out plan put forward by Michael Dell, the firms founder, and Silver Lake, aprivate-equity firm. His pressing has already forced the buy-out group to raise its initialoffer by over $350m, to $24.8 billion and he has taken his battle to the courts in a bid toextract an even higher price.

　　伊坎先生也仍在從戴爾公司爭(zhēng)取更多的錢，他正在游說(shuō)股東反對(duì)一起收購(gòu)。這項(xiàng)收購(gòu)計(jì)劃是由戴爾的創(chuàng)始人邁克爾戴爾和一家私募股權(quán)公司銀湖發(fā)起的。來(lái)自伊坎先生的壓力已經(jīng)使收購(gòu)方提高了3.5億美元的價(jià)格，使得收購(gòu)價(jià)達(dá)到了248億美元。他已經(jīng)將斗爭(zhēng)帶到了法庭，通過(guò)投標(biāo)爭(zhēng)取得到更多的錢。

　　Other tech firms have been attracting the attention of activist investors too. Earlier this yearValueAct Capital, an investment fund, said it had built up a $2 billion stake in Microsoft.Jaguar Financial, a Canadian bank, has been encouraging fresh thinking at troubledBlackBerry, which announced on August 12th that it is exploring various strategic options,including alliances and a possible sale. And Elliott Management, a hedge fund, has beenlobbying for change at NetApp, a data-storage firm that it thinks could do more to improvereturns to shareholders.

　　其他的科技公司也吸引了不少積極投資者的注意。今年早些時(shí)候，一個(gè)投資基金ValueAct Capital表示其持有了微軟公司20億美元的股份。加拿大銀行捷豹金融也鼓勵(lì)陷入危機(jī)的黑莓創(chuàng)新思維。今年8月12日，黑莓公司表示其正在探索戰(zhàn)略選擇，包括結(jié)盟和出售公司。一家對(duì)沖基金艾略特管理公司游說(shuō)數(shù)據(jù)存儲(chǔ)公司NetApp做出改變，該公司認(rèn)為NetApp能做出更多來(lái)提高股東的收益。

　　One reason tech firms have found themselves in activists crosshairs is that, like Apple, somebuilt up big cash piles during the economic downturn and have been slow to use the money.Financiers hope to get them to loosen their purse-strings faster and to pocket some of thecash. Mr Icahn wants Apple to increase and accelerate a share buy-back programme that iscurrently set to return $60 billion to shareholders by the end of 2023.

　　積極投資人瞄準(zhǔn)科技公司的一個(gè)原因是，很多科技公司跟蘋果一樣在經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退時(shí)擁有很大的現(xiàn)金流，但是資金利用不足。金融家希望他們放松自己的財(cái)政，放出更多的現(xiàn)金。伊坎先生想要蘋果增加并加速其股份回購(gòu)計(jì)劃。現(xiàn)在該計(jì)劃是截止到2023年末，蘋果公司返還600億美元給股東。

　　Another reason that tech firms make tempting targets for shareholder activists is that swiftchanges in technologies can trip up even the mightiest. Witness the case of Microsoft, whichruled the roost during the personal-computer era but has struggled to adapt to a world inwhich tablets and smartphones are all the rage. Investors hope to mint money by pushingcompanies to change more rapidly in response to such upheavals in their markets.

　　積極投資者瞄準(zhǔn)科技公司的另一個(gè)原因就是科技的日新月異甚至?xí)憧逍袠I(yè)巨頭。看一看微軟的例子，在個(gè)人電腦時(shí)期成壟斷之勢(shì)，而在平板電腦智能手機(jī)時(shí)代則處于苦苦掙扎的境地。投資者希望通過(guò)推動(dòng)公司做出更快改變適應(yīng)市場(chǎng)變化來(lái)掙得更多利潤(rùn)。

　　The rewards can be substantial. Egged on by Third Point, an activist hedge fund, Yahooappointed Marissa Mayer as its new chief executive in July 2023. By the time shecelebrated a year in the job last month, the troubled web giants share price had risen byover 70%. In July the hedge fund sold a big chunk of shares back to Yahoo. Mr Icahn thinksApples share price, which closed at $499 on August 14th, could soar too if the firm follows hisadvice on buy-backs. He tweeted this week that he had had a nice conversation with TimCook, Apples boss, about his idea, though he did not say what Mr Cook thought of it. If Appledrags its feet, expect things to turn nasty.

　　報(bào)酬是實(shí)質(zhì)性的。在活躍對(duì)沖基金第三點(diǎn)公司的慫恿之下，雅虎在2023年7月任命梅麗莎梅耶為新CEO。上個(gè)月她任職一年，這家陷入危機(jī)的互聯(lián)網(wǎng)巨頭股價(jià)上升了70%。7月，這家對(duì)沖基金回賣了一大筆股票給雅虎。伊坎先生認(rèn)為蘋果如果聽從他關(guān)于回購(gòu)的意見的話，其股價(jià)也能大漲。8月14日蘋果的股價(jià)為每股499美元。這周他發(fā)推表示他跟蘋果老板蒂姆庫(kù)克有一個(gè)很愉快的對(duì)話，盡管他沒(méi)有說(shuō)庫(kù)克對(duì)其建議的看法。如果蘋果一拖再拖的話，等著丑事兒發(fā)生吧。