Apple Spikes on Chatter of Special Dividend, Suppliers Hiring

Shares of Apple

spiked late on Monday, moving up about $8 per share, and into positive territory for the session. A number of rumors swirled on twitter, including the possibility that Apple could pay a special dividend. There was also a report from Reuters that Apple's suppliers TSMC and Foxconn were each adding 5,000 jobs. Apple's immense cash pile (dubbed by David Einhorn a “war vault”) has drawn considerable attention from investors. With over $42 per share, Apple could easily afford to pay some form of special dividend, buy back shares or boost its quarterly dividend. As for TSMC and Foxconn, they are both major Apple suppliers. If the companies are increasing employment, it's likely that they are seeing additional demand. However, it is not as if the companies are sole Apple suppliers: they also have contracts with other major tech companies like Qualcomm and Samsung. Shares of Apple traded near $436 heading into the close Monday.