It's an indication of harder times in the past, not in the future. Management has specific information about what the future holds that we as investors do not
Also Apple doesn't have a cash issue. Companies that need to think about liquidity are those on the verge of bankruptcy, which isn't the case here. There's sufficient cash (from the Balance Sheet but also from Operating Cash every year) to fund R&D at Apple. Heck, if you divide their annual R&D spend ($29B in 2023) by the cash sitting on their balance sheet ($148B in 2023), they have enough cash today[1] to fund 5+ years worth of R&D without selling a single additional iPhone during that time
Buying back stock when the price drops is just taking advantage of the current situation to return capital to investors "cheaply".
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[1] Technically today = September 30, 2023, when they reported their 2023 10-K, if we're being pedantic. Both cash and R&D figures from that 10-K available here:
Ctrl+F "$148.3 billion as of September 30" for the cash balance and "Research and development" (there are multiple matches) for the $29B in R&D
Also Apple doesn't have a cash issue. Companies that need to think about liquidity are those on the verge of bankruptcy, which isn't the case here. There's sufficient cash (from the Balance Sheet but also from Operating Cash every year) to fund R&D at Apple. Heck, if you divide their annual R&D spend ($29B in 2023) by the cash sitting on their balance sheet ($148B in 2023), they have enough cash today[1] to fund 5+ years worth of R&D without selling a single additional iPhone during that time
Buying back stock when the price drops is just taking advantage of the current situation to return capital to investors "cheaply".
---
[1] Technically today = September 30, 2023, when they reported their 2023 10-K, if we're being pedantic. Both cash and R&D figures from that 10-K available here:
Ctrl+F "$148.3 billion as of September 30" for the cash balance and "Research and development" (there are multiple matches) for the $29B in R&D