Business
A14 | Saturday, August 4, 2018 | Nevada Appeal
FRUIT OF
Success
Apple becomes first
trillion-dollar company
By Michael Liedtke
Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO — Apple has
become the world’s first publicly
traded company to be valued at $1
trillion, the financial fruit of stylish
technology that has redefined what
we expect from our gadgets.
The milestone reached Thurs-
day marks the latest triumph of a
trend-setting company that two
mavericks named Steve started in a
Silicon Valley garage 42 years ago.
The achievement seemed unimag-
inable in 1997 when Apple teetered
on the edge of bankruptcy, with its
stock trading for less than $1, on a
split-adjusted basis., and its market
value dropping below $2 billion.
To survive, Apple brought back
its once-exiled co-founder, Steve
Jobs, as interim CEO and turned
to its archrival Microsoft for a $150
million cash infusion to help pay its
bills.
If someone had dared to buy
$10,000 worth of stock at that point
of desperation, the investment would
now be worth about $2.6 million.
Jobs eventually introduced popu-
lar products such as the iPod and iP-
hone that subsequently drove Apple’s
rise. The stock has been surging this
ABOVE: An electronic screen displays Apple stock at the Nasdaq MarketSite,
Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018, in New York. Apple has become the world’s first
publicly traded company to be valued at $1 trillion. The milestone marks
the triumph of stylish technology that has redefined what we expect from
our gadgets ever since two mavericks named Steve started the company 42
years ago.
week as anticipation mounts for the
next generation of iPhone, expected
to be released in September.
Apple hit the $1 trillion mark
when its shares reached $207.04
around midday in New York. They
rose to an all-time high of $208.32
before falling back slightly. The
shares are up around 23 percent so
far this year.
PHOTOS: AP
Another company, Saudi Arabian
Oil Co. could eclipse Apple if it goes
through with plans for an initial
public offering. Saudi officials have
said the IPO would value Saudi Ar-
amco, as the company is often called,
at about $2 trillion. But until the
IPO is completed, Saudi Aramco’s
APPLE, A15
New family
leave credit
for businesses
A
s an employer,
don’t you just
grind your teeth
when an employ-
ee calls in sick and you sus-
pect they’re just out skiing
or doing something fun
while using being sick as an
excuse to get out of work?
Are you one of those many
generous employers who
actually pay “sick leave,”
even to the “hooky-from-
work” folks?
Well, in the last Trump
tax law, there was a hidden
provision you’re going to
love. It’s a new tax credit
for employers who give em-
ployees time off for family
and medical leave. (Now at
least you might even get a
credit for paying sick leave
to an employee who’s just
playing hooky from work,
as long as you only suspect
the hooky and can’t prove
it).
Here are the specifics to
be able to take this credit:
1) You must have a
written plan that has been
distributed to all employees
stating the “rules” you offer
(i.e. pay, number of days off
per year, types of events,
etc.);
2) Your “plan” must offer
at least two weeks of paid
leave annually;
3) Qualified work-
ers must earn less than
$72,000 a year;
4) Qualified workers
must have been employed
by you for at least one year;
5) Payment for leave must
be at least 50 percent of
regular pay;
6) Credit starts at 12.5
percent of actual leave paid
for 50 percent of regular
pay and goes up to a max-
imum of 25 percent credit
for 100 percent of regular
pay;
7) Maximum time leave
pay qualifies is 12 weeks.
Kinds of events that qual-
ify for the credit on pay-
ment of family and medical
leave are:
1) Birth of the employee’s
child and the care of such
child;
2) Placement of a child
with the employee for
adoption or foster care;
3) Care for the employ-
ee’s spouse, child, or parent
who has a serious health
condition;
Kelly
Bullis
Tax Tips (And
Other Stuff)
You should be
having your
bookkeeper keep
track of all the
qualified family and
medical leave you
paid. At the end of
the year, tell your
tax preparer that
amount.
4) The employee’s serious
health condition that makes
them unable to perform the
functions of their position
(if they’re dealing with the
debilitating symptoms of
a flu virus, they obviously
are unable to perform their
job);
5) Any qualifying exi-
gency due to an employee’s
spouse, child, or parent be-
ing on covered active duty
in the armed forces.
Please note, as of this
date, this credit is only
available for 2018 and 2019.
Hopefully, Congress will ex-
tend it (like they’ve done in
other cases in the past), but
there’s no guarantee.
You should be having
your bookkeeper keep track
of all the qualified fami-
ly and medical leave you
paid. At the end of the year,
tell your tax preparer that
amount.
Hey! If you were already
a generous employer, this
is found money! If you’ve
been on the fence about
starting a family and med-
ical leave pay arrangement,
maybe this credit is enough
to get you started.
Did you hear? Psalms
94:19 says, “When the cares
of my heart are many, your
consolations cheer my soul.”
Kelly Bullis is a Certified
Public Accountant in
Carson City. Contact him
at 882-4459. He’s also on
the web at BullisAndCo.com
and on Facebook.