By John Kell
Altera Corp.'s (ALTR) board has increased the number of shares
the chip maker can repurchase, expanding a buyback program that now
has the authority to repurchase about 13% of the company's
outstanding shares.
The company, which makes chips that can be programmed for
specific jobs, has added an additional 30 million shares under the
repurchase program. The total amount of shares that can be
repurchased now stands at 41 million. Altera has about 319 million
shares outstanding, according to FactSet Research.
Altera said it believes the authorization announced Wednesday
will be sufficient to support the company's share buyback
objectives through "mid-2015."
So far in 2013, the company declined to repurchase shares in the
first quarter, but bought back some stock in the second
quarter.
Altera last month reported second-quarter earnings dropped 38%
due to lower sales in the Americas and Asia-Pacific regions. The
company has been stung by defense-budget cuts, as well as weak
demand from some wireless customers.
Shares rose 1%, to $35.13 in after-hours trading. Through
Wednesday's close, the stock has risen 1.2% in 2013, far under the
broader market's gain.
Write to John Kell at john.kell@wsj.com
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