If the stock market’s two-day rout extends for a prolonged period of time, expect a surge in the number of companies that either announce plans to repurchase their shares or actually buy back their stock to place a floor under the share price. Indeed, that surge may have begun Thursday, when a pair of high-profile companies announced sizable buybacks.
Wynn Resorts, for one, reported that its board authorized an equity repurchase program of up to $1.2 billion. The program may include purchases of both its common stock and its 6 percent convertible debentures due in 2015. Wynn also reported that intends to call the debentures for redemption on July 20.
From time to time and depending upon market conditions, the buybacks may include repurchases through open- market purchases or negotiated transactions, the hotel and casino company stated.
Meanwhile, the board of Analog Devices okayed the repurchase of an added $1 billion of its stock, bringing the total funds currently available for buybacks to about $1.4 billion, or nearly 12 percent of its market capitalization.
Since it launched its repurchase program in fiscal 2004, the company has bought back about $2.6 billion, or 20 percent, of its shares outstanding.