SAN FRANCISCO — Apple shareholders approved the company’s proposals and rejected those that the board opposed at its annual meeting, in a show of support for Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook.
Cook told stockholders at the event in Cupertino, Calif., that Apple is on the right track.
Revenue growth “is greater than any other technology company,” the CEO said. “We made more money than any other technology company has ever made. Other than companies that drill oil for a living, I’m not sure that anyone has ever made more. We’re very proud of that.”
Cook is under investor pressure to reignite growth with new breakthrough products as the pace of sales slows for the iPhone and iPad. The world’s most valuable company, whose shares lagged behind the broader market last year, reported a drop in profit for the first time in more than a decade in its latest fiscal year.
Apple recently faced down activist investor Carl Icahn, who had called on the company to increase its share buybacks. Earlier this month, Icahn dropped a plan to force a vote over the issue, saying he was satisfied with statements by Cook that Apple had bought back $14 billion of its own shares in two weeks, bringing its repurchases to more than $40 billion in a year.
Institutional ownership of Apple shares has declined as funds question the company’s ability to increase revenue long term, Morgan Stanley said in a report this week. Apple’s 30 largest shareholders own a record low 30 percent of shares outstanding, down from a peak of 40 percent in 2009, according to the report.
At the meeting, Apple said it will have an update within 60 days on its cash policies. Cook declined to elaborate, saying the company is “in it for the long term.”
Apple has been exploring new products, people familiar with the plans have said. Those range from iPhones with bigger screens to a new wearable computer and payments system.
