Samsung unveils share buy-back
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Samsung's planned buy-back is designed to boost its share price.
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SEOUL, South Korea (Reuters) -- South Korean technology giant Samsung Electronics said Friday it will spend about 1 trillion won ($823 million) in a share buy-back to lift shareholder value.
It said it would buy 3.1 million common shares, or 2 percent of outstanding shares, and 470,000 preferred shares.
Samsung estimated in a filing to the Korea Stock Exchange that it would spend about one trillion won on the buy-back, but a spokesman said the exact amount could depend on market trends.
The world's largest maker of computer memory chips and third-biggest handset maker said it would buy back the shares between March 11 and June 10 this year.
"We had decided to pay a 5,000 won dividend to shareholders as of the end of last year, but there had been demands that the company do more to boost share prices," Samsung spokesman James Chung told Reuters.
The news boosted Samsung shares, which closed 1.81 percent higher at 281,000 won on Friday, up from a low of 270,000 won in the morning.
The amount of shares to be cancelled represented 2 percent of its outstanding common shares, currently totalling 158.78 million shares, and 2 percent of its preferred shares, now numbering 23.89 million shares.
Samsung's common shares have fallen about 10 percent so far this year.
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