Apple is claiming that the first few days of "The new iPad" generated "record" sales but today its CEO Tim Cook stopped short of offering any specific sales numbers. In the conference call this morning, (you can listen to the repeat on Apple's web site), a financial analyst asked about how the new iPad did in terms of its first sales weekend. However Cook only said, "We had a record weekend, and we're thrilled with it."
There's no word if by "record weekend" he meant record sales for the iPad, record sales for any product Apple has launched or indeed any color beyond that small statement. We have noted that The new iPad was not an instant sellout on Friday at Apple stores in New York City but that fact may not mean anything due to Apple allowing for online pre-orders for the tablet over a week before it went on sale at brick and mortar stores.
Apple did announce today that it will offer its shareholders a quarterly dividend of $2.65 per share starting sometime in Apple's July-September financial quarter. In addition, Apple will spend $10 billion of its nearly $100 billion cash balance to buy back shares starting on September 30. Apple plans to spend a total of $45 billion over the next three years on these programs. Cook said that will still leave Apple with enough money to "maintain a war chest for strategic opportunities and have plenty of cash to run our business."
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