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Ballmer, who retired as CEO in February but is
still the company's biggest individual shareholder, sat next to
Jackson in the second row of the Meydenbauer Center auditorium,
packed with about 400 shareholders. He chatted warmly with
Jackson before and after the meeting, surrounded by well-wishers
and photographers.
The famously loud Ballmer, who had several clashes with the
board in his 14 years as CEO, applauded several times but was
not always impressed with responses from the stage.
"That last answer sucked!" Ballmer whispered to an acquaintance,
quite loudly, immediately after the meeting ended, referring to
a roundabout reply by Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood.
A shareholder had asked at what price Microsoft would consider
not buying back its own shares, a question on many investors'
minds after the stock has risen 82 percent over the past two
years to 14-year highs.
"I generally believe that our ability to grow is really only
limited by our own imagination, so I tend to think the stock
price over time reflects our ability to execute on that broad
dream," Hood answered, dodging the direct question but
effectively signaling that the shares should keep rising as long
as Microsoft achieves its goals.
"Well said," new CEO Satya Nadella chimed in.
Ballmer, who stepped down from Microsoft's board in August to
focus on his $2 billion purchase of the NBA's Los Angeles
Clippers, is dependent on his 4 percent stake in Microsoft for
the bulk of his estimated $23 billion fortune, and therefore is
sensitive to the price of his shares.
But he did not ask any questions publicly at the meeting.
"As a block shareholder, the company regularly reaches out. I
didn't need to use the time today," Ballmer said in an interview
after the meeting.
Jackson, who met with Nadella this week, asked the company to
step up its efforts to create a more diverse workforce.
According to the company's latest data, its more than
100,000-strong workforce is 71 percent male and 61 percent
Caucasian.
Nadella, who is Indian-born, and Chairman John Thompson, who is
African-American, assured Jackson the issue was a priority for
Microsoft.
(Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Richard Chang)
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