Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) has nearly $29 billion of cash on hand, a hoard exceeded by only one tech company — Cisco Systems (NSDQ: CSCO), reports Reuters. With that kind of capital in the bank, it’s no wonder that buyout rumors are rampant.
At this stage, the rumors seem highly unlikely.The most ridiculous, according to Kara Swisher of All Things D, is Apple buying Twitter. She believes it to be untrue because both Twitter co-founders, Evan Williams and Biz Stone, are in New York today to attend the 2009 Time 100 dinner, as two of the magazine’s top picks for most influential people. How could they be negotiating a deal from 3,000 miles away?, she reasons. The second rumor is coming from FastMoney’s Guy Adami, who is claiming that there is “chatter” that Apple is eyeing an Electronic Arts (NSDQ: ERTS) takeover, reports MacRumors, which also quotes Kotaku, as calling the prediction “sketchy, at best.” See full story here on our sister site mocoNews.net.
If I were Apple, I'd consider using some of that cash to simply knock down the price of some of their items. Once they get people to switch, they might have them for life.
While I think an Apple Twitter acquisition is highly unlikely, I think there's more potential there than most people think.
http://seedchange.wordpress.com/2009/05/12/the-twitter-derby/