Citrix Systems has announced changes in its board of directors and plans to repurchase up to $200 million of its common stock.
Current board member Tom Bogan, former president and CEO of Rational Software, takes over as chairman. He replaces Stephen Dow, who’s been serving as chairman since May 2002. Dow will remain on the board.
Joining Bogan on the board are two new members, Murray Demo, chief financial officer of Adobe Systems, and Godfrey Sullivan, president and CEO of Hyperion Solutions. They’re replacing two longtime board members, Kevin Compton and Tyrone Pike, who are retiring, having served for 14 years and 11 years respectively.
The brief announcement of the stock buyback gave no reasons for the move. Companies repurchase stock for a number of reasons, but one of the most important to increase earnings per share (EPS), often to meet Wall Street expectations. Other reasons are to signal optimism to investors about the company’s prospects or to manage excess free cash flows.
Citrix’s stock price started moving up slightly Friday after the news, gaining a few cents from its start at around $21.50. Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has ranged from a low of about $15 in August, to a December high of $26. It’s been trending down ever since.
