Powertech Technology Inc (力成), which provides packaging and testing services for -memorychip makers, said its board of directors yesterday approved a share buyback plan to “protect its -creditworthiness and shareholder value.”
In a filing to the Taiwan Stock Exchange after the market closed, Powertech said its board had agreed to buy back 20 million common shares traded on the main bourse at a price ranging between NT$50 and NT$70 a share between today and July 10. The amount of the shares to be repurchased represents 2.5 percent of the company’s issued shares, the Hsinchu-based company said. It is the first time Powertech has launched such a buyback plan.
Powertech shares fell 0.53 percent to NT$56.2 yesterday.
The company’s share price has dropped 12.32 percent since the beginning of the year, compared with the TAIEX’s 5.82 rise over the same period, following Elpida Memory Inc’s financial restructuring and the recent sell-off because of the controversy surrounding a proposed capital gains tax on stock transactions.
Elpida is one of Powertech’s customers, accounting for more than half of the Taiwanese company’s revenue. The Japanese firm’s bankruptcy protection petition has caused Powertech to book a loss of NT$1.89 billion (US$64.42 million) for last year.
Last month, Powertech posted a net income of NT$1.134 billion, or earnings per share of NT$1.42, in the first three months. That compares with a net loss of NT$307 million, or a loss per share of NT$0.38 per share, in the previous quarter.
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