Apple Bumps Dividend 11 Percent, Expands Shareholder Returns to $200 Billion

Apple announced Monday a significant increase to its shareholder capital return program to a cumulative total of $200 billion. The company is increasing its share repurchase program by $50 billion, while its dividends will be increased 11 percent to $0.52 per share.

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"We believe Apple has a bright future ahead, and the unprecedented size of our capital return program reflects that strong confidence," Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a statement. "While most of our program will focus on buying back shares, we know that the dividend is very important to many of our investors, so we’re raising it for the third time in less than three years."

During the course of its capital return program, Apple has already returned more than $112 billion to shareholders. That includes $32 billion in dividends and $80 billion in share repurchases.

To fund all of this, Apple said it will continue to borrow money. While Apple is making money faster than ever, much of it is overseas. The company has found it cheaper to borrow money in the U.S. than to bring money home from those international markets.

*In the interest of full disclosure, the author holds a tiny, almost insignificant share in AAPL stock that was not an influence in the creation of this article.