On Friday, Nokia (HE:NOKIA) Corporation announced the launch of a share buyback program designed to counteract the dilutive effect of its recent acquisition of Infinera (NASDAQ:INFN) Corporation. The program aims to repurchase up to 150 million shares, amounting to a maximum expenditure of €900 million. This move comes as part of Nokia's strategy to minimize the impact on its share value following the issuing of new shares to Infinera shareholders and to address dilution from Infinera's share-based incentives.
The buyback is set to commence no earlier than November 25, 2024, and is scheduled to conclude by December 31, 2025. Nokia's initiative will reduce the company's capital, with the repurchased shares being cancelled to align with the purpose of offsetting the additional shares issued. The funding for the repurchases will come from Nokia's reserve for invested unrestricted equity, and the activity will decrease the company's total unrestricted equity.
The authorization for this share buyback was granted by Nokia's Board of Directors, based on the approval from the Annual General Meeting held on April 3, 2024. The maximum number of shares to be repurchased under this program accounts for roughly 3% of Nokia's total share count. The acquisition of shares will occur through public trading on Nasdaq Helsinki and on selected multilateral trading facilities, with no repurchases occurring in the United States. A third-party broker has been appointed to manage the buyback, making independent trading decisions without Nokia's influence.
The share repurchase will adhere to the "safe harbour" rules of the EU Market Abuse Regulation, ensuring that the price paid per share is determined by the prevailing market price within the set regulatory limits for price and volume. Nokia has also stated that the program may be concluded ahead of the end date if necessary, with a formal stock exchange release to be issued in such an event.
Nokia is a global leader in B2B technology innovation, known for its advanced work in mobile, fixed, and cloud networks. The company's commitment to creating high-performance networks that integrate seamlessly into various ecosystems has made it a trusted partner for service providers, enterprises, and collaborators around the world.
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