So, Tim can’t think of anything that would net yield > 2.7%?
Well, not anything that passes muster with the directors.
There’s no more “passive” and “safe” parking investment for huge wads of cash on the balance sheets any more. Treasury debt has been bid up (ie, yield rates have come down) and there’s a ferocious risk in making big investments in sovereign debt now. Rates can’t go much lower than they are, and with real inflation exceeding the “safe” yields of sovereign paper, there’s no point in holding such investments any way.
If Apple could see some acquisition targets, they could use the cash for buying technology or companies that would be positive for their bottom line - but there’s not really anything out there on the horizon just now, unless they want to buy their way further into the entertainment/content creation market. I’ve thought for a long time that they should seek to buy a record company that’s foundering and start taking musicians from recording content clear through to distribution, and start stealing acts away from the bigger studios.