Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) reported a modest beat on its quarterly earnings and issued June-quarter revenue guidance that wasn't as bad as feared. The stock, however, took off thanks to the company's generous shareholder return plan. Apple hiked its quarterly dividend by 4.17% and announced its biggest-ever stock buyback, which surprised even Tesla's Technoking.

What Happened: News of Apple's massive $110 billion stock buyback program was posted online by global capital markets commentator The Kobeissi Letter. The iPhone maker's largesse toward shareholders caught the eye of Tesla CEO Elon Musk. He simply replied "Wow" to the post by The Kobeissi Letter.

The Kobeissi Letter replied to Musk saying there's a trend of big tech companies ramping up buybacks, with U.S. stock repurchases expected to cross $1 trillion for the first time ever this year. "All eyes are on Tesla..." it added.

Tesla's Buyback Dilemma: In 2022, Tesla faced pressure from investors to initiate buybacks to lift its stock price. Musk mentioned in October 2022 that a $5 billion to $10 billion buyback for 2023 was discussed "extensively" by the board. However, the capital-intensive nature of the electric vehicle industry necessitates constant investment in production.

Currently, Tesla is navigating a "Category 5 storm" of waning demand and fierce competition, making capital preservation even more crucial.

Cook Draws Some Flak: Not everyone is applauding Apple's buyback plan. Some social media users criticized CEO Tim Cook for prioritizing numbers and investor appeasement over innovation.

One user commented, "Tim Cook will go down as one of the worst CEOs in history I predict. What happens when you replace a 'visionary' product-centric CEO with a numbers-focused CEO only concerned about profits & share price? Innovation stagnates as there is 0 risk tolerance or vision 4 future."

'Mag 7' Pressure? Alphabet became the latest "Magnificent Seven" company to initiate a dividend policy, leaving only Amazon and Tesla as holdouts in this elite group. Microsoft said it returned $8.4 billion to shareholders in the form of share repurchases and dividends in the third quarter, while Facebook parent Meta Platforms also announced in February that, for the very first time, it will be rewarding its shareholders with dividends.

Price Action: Apple shares added 6.03% to $183.46 in after-hours trading, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Photo by Frederic Legrand – COMEO on Shutterstock