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Apple's Tim Cook: Business isn’t just about making a profit

I'm not sure it was a misconception on his part. Anyone familiar with business knows that it takes a lot of different things to fall in line to make a profit. Many of which do not directly improve profit in the short term. So it sort of goes without saying that apple worries about a lot more then strictly it's bottom line, because those things affect future bottom lines.

Investors know that. I've owned many a company that have made me large returns (% wise, since I don't have much money to play with as a college student) not based on their current revenue but based on future products still in the research phase. Company's that lose money can go up in stock price based on what the company is doing. So for Tim Cook to excuse the current situation of the company as "them doing things other then make profits" is exactly that, a defensive excuse. People aren't blind dead and dumb to what's going on at Apple, it's just more likely they aren't impressed. And Tim Cook isn't doing his company any favors by being defensive, thus giving the appearance that nothing exciting is going on with the company in the future. A tremendous PR blunder on his part.
Based off of his response to the news article, I'm going to assume he's not part of the "anyone familiar with business" group. (Which could be interpreted anywhere between "took a required economics class in high school" to "took a few business classes in college"). I'm not really interested in having a discussion on business practices. I just wanted to point out that Tim Cook isn't completely disregarding profit for his company and just wants to help make the world a better place in general. I don't think such activism pursued by CEOs is anything new.
 
Based on Fiddytrees response, I don't think so.

What about his response? Perhaps if you could go back in time 10 years and buy the stock you're in a good place, but there are plenty of concerns in the short term that fiddytree did nothing to address.

I respect the hell out of him, but what he said doesn't mean all is well in Apple land. Just because the stock has done well over the last ten years does not mean it will do well over the next ten. See Microsoft.
 
What about his response? Perhaps if you could go back in time 10 years and buy the stock you're in a good place, but there are plenty of concerns in the short term that fiddytree did nothing to address.

I respect the hell out of him, but what he said doesn't mean all is well in Apple land. Just because the stock has done well over the last ten years does not mean it will do well over the next ten. See Microsoft.

But it doesn't mean it won't either. Success often depends on what else you do. It'll be interesting watching what actually happens.
 
Based off of his response to the news article, I'm going to assume he's not part of the "anyone familiar with business" group. (Which could be interpreted anywhere between "took a required economics class in high school" to "took a few business classes in college"). I'm not really interested in having a discussion on business practices. I just wanted to point out that Tim Cook isn't completely disregarding profit for his company and just wants to help make the world a better place in general. I don't think such activism pursued by CEOs is anything new.

And I guarantee you how much money they are spending on making the world a better place doesn't comprise even 1% of their drop in $5B drop in profit last year.

Oh and taking a dig at my business understanding just makes you look stupid when you turn around and say you're not interested in discussing business. I suppose it's easier for you to argue from a position of ignorance.
 
But it doesn't mean it won't either. Success often depends on what else you do. It'll be interesting watching what actually happens.

It's always interesting to watch what happens. Unless your own money is involved of course, then it's maddening. I'm just saying that at this exact moment in time there is valid concern that what Apple is doing is completely uninspiring. That's just what I'm seeing from Tim Cook at the moment, but maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised.
 
Oh and taking a dig at my business understanding just makes you look stupid when you turn around and say you're not interested in discussing business. I suppose it's easier for you to argue from a position of ignorance.
What? I was just expressing my skepticism of the OP's understanding of business. The reason I stated that I wasn't interested in discussing business practices was because it was completely irrelevant to my first post in the thread. Again, I just wanted to point out a misinterpretation that the OP made regarding the article.
 
It's always interesting to watch what happens. Unless your own money is involved of course, then it's maddening. I'm just saying that at this exact moment in time there is valid concern that what Apple is doing is completely uninspiring. That's just what I'm seeing from Tim Cook at the moment, but maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised.

We'll see. I'm not too concerned personally, and likely wouldn't get too worked up even if I were a stock holder. But that's just a temperament thing.
 
You've continually applied a point of view which is almost entirely irrelevant to the situation. There wasn't much politics here. Continue to ignore all of the facts, stand on your mountain made of ant hills, and trumpet the call to profit all you want. However, you have continually ignored all of the following:

1) Apple has done incredibly well for its stockholders and remains a juggernaut in the industry.

2) Apple has rebuilt its company image on being more green-friendly for years after being trashed in the past by not doing so. Since then, Apple's image has remained strong (not without problems stemming from patent lawsuits and overseas accounts, but positive enough) and the stock has done incredibly well.

3) Apple's problem as of late has not been the misapplication of money, but perhaps, rather, the lack of spending money.

4) The proposal was rejected by over 97%. Almost all involved agreed that a profit-only proposal was bonkers

To summarize: what on earth are you actually complaining about?

My complaint (of which I didn't really have one) is this meme of everything being sold to us as "green"... it's pure crap. And if anyone is investing in this basis then I feel sorry for them. A fool and their money are soon parted.
 
The new CEO is not unlike Paris Hilton using daddies money to promote a 'cause'. Good for him and all that...but lets not be silly. APPLE is an economic monster and has been ALL ABOUT profit.
 
Well, that's what shareholders want to hear....Your investment isn't about making a profit....So, I wonder now how long before Apple becomes yet another 'used to be' on the trash heap of good companies ran into the ground by poor businessmen with stupid ideas?

Of course, after Apple already made piles and piles of money over the past 30-years - it's not about profit anymore....

I would love to see that dummy tell that to an individual with a struggling business.
 
Of course, after Apple already made piles and piles of money over the past 30-years - it's not about profit anymore....

I would love to see that dummy tell that to an individual with a struggling business.

Not to mention that when left to sink and sink, should Apple become one of the 'used to be greats', then progressives will blame their decline somehow on the banks rather than the fools errands that wasted the money in the first place.
 
Of course, after Apple already made piles and piles of money over the past 30-years - it's not about profit anymore....

I would love to see that dummy tell that to an individual with a struggling business.

A business has to have a profit to survive. After it is profitable and continues to be profitable it can do some other things. But those things disappear if profit disappears.
 
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