Yahoo! Inc will be giving back more money to its stakeholders as it increased its share repurchase authorization by USD 5 billion. Aside from the share repurchase, Yahoo is also planning to raise USD 1 billion in convertible debt that would mature in five years. The share repurchase is the latest for the company since its July buyback of its 40 million shares held by activity investor Daniel Loeb's Third Point. It can be recalled that last year, Yahoo divested half of its stake in China-based Alibaba Group Holding. Yahoo also said that it would be giving back most of the proceeds to its investors. The stake sale gave Yahoo USD 3.65 billion.
Since January last year, Yahoo has conducted a total of USD 5.3 billion in share repurchases. In its earnings call last month, the company said the buybacks included the repurchase valued at USD 1.7 billion held in the third quarter.
Led by Chief Executive Marissa Mayer, the biggest Internet portal in the US is looking to revitalize the company's growth. To turn the embattled technology around, Mayer had concentrated on buying technology startups to enhance its workforce or widen its user base.
Meanwhile, Mayer was also one of the speakers of the Salesforce.com Dreamforce conference held today. She bared plans to appoint a head of design to help the company create products that will engage customers. The head of design will be reporting directly to Mayer. She also said that the senior vice president of design will also help make apps and Web pages that will appeal to the wants of the users. Bloomberg reported that Mayer has been making the rounds in countries like China, Japan, Israel to observe how Yahoo's products are used by consumers and advertisers alike.
Mayer said, "Yahoo, like a lot of companies, is a company that needs to reinvent itself. You shouldn't design for the expert user."
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