Baxter (NYSE:BAX) said today its board of directors approved a $1.5 billion increase in its share repurchase plan as it announced its quarterly cash dividend of 13¢.
The share repurchase plan, which was approved in 2012, now has $1.9 billion to repurchase shares. Baxter said it will engage in repurchasing “at times and amounts determined by the company based on its evaluation of market conditions and other factors.”
”These actions reflect our commitment to returning meaningful value to shareholders while also balancing reinvestment in the business to drive long-term, sustainable growth,” CFO Jay Saccaro said in a press release.
Late last month, Baxter posted a classic beat-and-raise 2nd quarter, handily topping expectations on Wall Street, boosting its outlook for the rest of the year and sending its share price up in early trading.
The Chicago-area healthcare giant logged profits of $130 million, or 24¢ per share, on sales of $2.56 billion for the 3 months ended Sept. 30, for a dramatic 12,900% bottom-line gain on sales growth of 2.9% compared with Q3 2015.
Adjusted to exclude 1-time items, earnings per share were 56¢, a full 11¢ ahead of The Street, where analysts were looking for sales of $2.55 billion.