apple inc (AAPL) Snapshot

Apple may have to pony up more than $5 million in a class action suit to a Florida woman who is suing the company over alleged faulty power buttons on its iPhone 4. The lawsuit claims that the defect typically arises shortly after one year at which point the warranty has expired, forcing consumers to pay $149 for repairs.

Apple Inc. sold $17 billion in bonds in a record deal spurred by the company's plan to placate its frustrated shareholders. The company sold the bonds in its first debt issue since the 1990s to raise money to pass along to shareholders through dividend payments and stock buybacks. The payments are part of an effort to reverse a 37% drop in Apple's stock price during the past seven months amid intensifying concerns about the company's shrinking profit margins as it faces more competition in a mobile computing market that Apple revolutionized with its iPhone and iPad lines. Apple has $145 billion in cash, more than enough for the $100-billion cash return program it announced last week. However, most of its money sits in overseas accounts, and the company doesn't plan to bring it to the US unless the federal corporate tax rate is lowered. With interest rates so low, it makes sense for Apple to borrow a large sum of money rather than pay a big tax bill. What's more, raising the money through a corporate bond sale gives Apple a tax benefit. That's because interest payments on corporate debt are tax-deductible. With the demand outstripping the supply for the Apple bonds, the investment bankers were able to lower the interest rate to be paid on the debt. Apple laid out its plans to issue six different types of bonds in a regulatory filing. The bonds range in duration from three years to 30 years. Apple still hadn't filed additional documents to break down the final pricing and yields on the bonds. Apple borrowed $5.5 billion for 10 years at 2.415%. Other yields included 0.511% for three-year bonds and 30-year bonds at 3.883%. The rates were comparable to what a company with a triple A credit rating could command.

US judge has rejected property licensing firm Golden Bridge Technology's patent infringement claims against Apple Inc. Golden Bridge sued Apple, Amazon and other tech majors in 2010 over two patents for 3G network communications. The patents involved in Golden Bridge's lawsuit related to wireless cellular networks and a communication link between a mobile station and a base station.

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