It undilutes the stock, indirectly raising the stock price. I've heard it's like paying a dividend, except taxed differently. So shareholders should be happy,

It undilutes the stock, indirectly raising the stock price. I've heard it's like paying a dividend, except taxed differently. So shareholders should be happy, and the executives at the company who are making this decision typically own a bunch of shares as well, so they should make out. If Apple thought they could spend $110B more efficiently, I guess they would. But it's difficult to deploy massive capital.