Applying the Apple Rule

My, what a flurry of activity with regard to Apple.

First, the San Jose Mercury News reports last weekend that Apple CEO Steve Jobs appeared to be in the clear of the risk of criminal charges in regard to the investigation into backdating of stock options at Apple.

Next, on Tuesday, Dealbreaker’s John Carney noted that two former Apple executives in the crosshairs of the SEC’s parallel investigation — general counsel Nancy Heinen and CFO Fred Anderson — are taking very different approaches to dealing with the investigation.

On one hand, Heinen is fighting the SEC charges, while Anderson has settled up with the SEC.

But then, in a somewhat unusual development in such matters, Anderson proceeded to issue a public statement that appears to contradict Jobs’ story that he didn’t really understand the implications of this whole backdating thing.

Finally, after all this, Apple’s stock price went through the roof on Wednesday on the heels of strong second quarter earnings.

So, leave it to the originator of the Apple Rule to size up the possible implications of these events:

Indeed, it may be that all this backdating stuff really is all about stock price. When the alleged backdating was going on at Apple, the stock was hovering at around 20. Under several more years of Jobs leadership, it’s up over 90. Backdating could bring it back to 20.

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