IBM Authorizes $5 Billion Share Buyback

IBM said Tuesday its board of directors authorized a new $5 billion stock buyback program. This adds to an existing share repurchase program, which had $1.4 billion remaining as of the end of September. Big Blue said it expects to request an additional share buyback authorization at the company's board meeting in April. Meanwhile, the company declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $1.10 a share, payable Dec. 10 to shareholders of record on Nov. 10. Shares of Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM edged up 0.4% to $162.59 in recent trade. They are down nearly 13.5% since January, underperforming the S&P 500, which is up 6.6%.