Monsanto accelerates share pepurchase program

Monsanto Company is accelerating its $800 million share repurchase program as part of its commitment to create value for its shareowners.

Monsanto plans to spend the remaining $276 million to complete the authorization this fiscal year, more than a full year ahead of its original plan, which was scheduled to end in December 2011. The company expects most of the repurchases to occur this week.

"Our companys strong cash flow has enabled us to pull our planned share repurchase forward, and we think the time is right to complete this authorization," said chief financial officer Carl Casale. "We see strong opportunities ahead for our business and view this as part of our commitment to delivering cash to shareowners -- whether through share repurchases or dividends."

Earlier this month, as part of the companys second-quarter earnings announcement, Monsanto executives said the company is positioned for earnings growth in the mid-teen percentages beyond the current fiscal year. The company also said it is working on a revitalized product strategy that will enable it to deliver more innovative products on farm, which will equip its farmer customers with more choices to benefit from the premium opportunity the companys products create and be more profitable as a result.

As of the end of the second quarter, the current $800 million share repurchase program was approximately half completed.

The share repurchase program was announced in April 2008 and began in December of that year, following the completion of a previous $800 million share repurchase program.