This is a guess: Perhaps its because he's the new CEO, and Apple has just issued a large dividend for the first time in a long time - it looks better if the ne

This is a guess: Perhaps its because he's the new CEO, and Apple has just issued a large dividend for the first time in a long time - it looks better if the new CEO isn't a major beneficiary of the policy shift. This shows everyone that he's in for the long run - there's no possible accusation that the dividend was for short term personal gain. This also sends the signal that he isn't just paying the dividend because he thinks share growth (otherwise his main compensation) is finished with.