Investors should be more wary today. It would be expected that a similar announcement by Intel would not bring forth such a fevered response. The dot.com bubble has burst and dissipated, and in its wake consumers are more wary of techniques to inflate stock value on paper. In 2005, Intel attempted a similar technique as IBM. However, the slightly more skeptical business press was quick to point out the 'fancy math' behind the move. Noting, Intel had only reduced earnings per share on paper, because of the increase of profits accorded to investors, with little real increase in wealth. BusinessWeek's 2006 article on Intel's buyback scheme was entitled: "The dirty little secret about buybacks."

Had a similar buyback technique been used by Intel right after the 2008 credit crisis, investors would have been even more leery. But now that the market has rebounded, investors may be less apt once again to pay careful attention to just how increased profits in terms of earnings per share are generated. The heady atmosphere of the 1990s is unlikely to return, particularly given the uncertainty of the European Community's fortunes. However,...

Even if the press is more apt to scrutinize corporate actions, particularly if CEOs with stock options stand to profit from such actions, investors who are numbers-driven may still be fooled by the sudden spike in value.