Apple has been hit with another investor lawsuit, this time from Brian Gralnick of Elkins Park, who seeks to block Apple"s plans for shareholder vote on two proxy proposals which is to be held on February 27th. Previously, influential investor, David Einhorn, sued Apple in a bid to get them to release some of their gigantic $127 billion cash hoard, citing a breach of a Securities and Exchange commission rule which prohibits companies from "bundling" unrelated matters into one shareholder vote. Einhorn"s case is due to be heard later this month, with Gralnick seeking to appear in the hearing.
Gralnick says there is "some overlap with the Einhorn case", but he is also suing Apple on another matter, which includes shareholders say on top executives pay and how it is decided; he claims that Apple did not disclose details of how executives pay is decided and gave shareholders no option to vote. The lawsuit does not state how much Apple stock Gnalnick holds.
Tim Cook has described Einhorn"s lawsuit as "a silly slideshow" which distracts Apple from their main goal: innovation. However, many investors feel that more of Apple"s $127 billion cash hoard should be shared out.
Reuters notes: "The claim of inadequate executive pay disclosure in Wednesday"s case follows other lawsuits in recent months filed against companies seeking injunctions ahead of say-on-pay votes. The cases have been met with varied success." Whether Einhorn"s and Gnalnick"s cases will fare well in court remains to be seen.
Source: Reuters