Apple to Shareholders: Vote Against Icahn Buyback Proposal

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) told shareholders Friday to vote against a proposal by billionaire investor Carl Icahn urging the technology giant to launch a massive share buyback plan.

Icahn is pushing Apple to unleash $50 billion in share repurchases over fiscal 2014, according to the Cupertino, Calif.-based company's preliminary proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The activist investor told Time Magazine earlier this month that while CEO Tim Cook "is doing a good job with the business ... Apple is not a bank.”

Icahn was referring to Apple's massive hoard of cash, that weighed in at $147 billion at the end of September.

Under Cook's stewardship, Apple initiated a dividend in May 2012 to quell investors who were demanding it return more cash to shareholders. Still, the dividends have barely dented the vast stockpile of cash -- especially at a company that is very conservative in making acquisitions.