RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK – ChannelAdvisor Corporation (NYSE: ECOM) completed a $25 million stock share repurchase program previously authorized by the company’s board of directors.  But the company is again announcing it will repurchase its shares.

The most recent buyback brought in more than 1.8 million shares of the company’s common stock, roughly 6% of the outstanding shares of the company, with an average price per share of $13.67, the company disclosed in a statement.

ChannelAdvisor provides cloud-based e-commerce solutions for brands and retailers and is headquartered in the Triangle, though the company moved to a workplace optional policy during the prior two years, and announced it would move headquarters to a smaller footprint late last year.

The company will again conduct a share buyback program, authorized by the firm’s board of directors, that will begin soon and be completed by the end of June 2023.  According to a statement, the company anticipates spending up to $25 million in additional capital to buy back its shares.

“Repurchases, if any, will be made from time-to-time on the open market at prevailing prices or in negotiated transactions off the market,” the statement notes.

ChannelAdvisor in the black with $1.8M in earnings

Why the program?

“Our capital allocation framework emphasizes generating returns on invested capital above our cost of capital, and our share repurchase programs are an important part of that framework,” said Rich Cornetta, ChannelAdvisor’s chief financial officer, in the statement.

“Based on our historical and anticipated free cash flow yield, we felt that our recent share price represented a compelling opportunity, and that executing our buyback was a tax-efficient way to return some of our surplus capital to shareholders,” said Cornetta.  “We are debt-free with a strong balance sheet, and our new repurchase authorization is intended to ensure that we continue to have this tool in our capital allocation toolbox going forward.”

The company said in its statement that it would provide additional program details on its fiscal year 2022 second-quarter results conference call in August.

ChannelAdvisor reported record revenue for the fourth quarter of 2021 and record profit for 2021 earlier this year.  The company’s first quarter 2022 report was also a positive one, according to CEO David Spitz, who noted the company had more than $100 million in cash, no debt, and a large opportunity ahead.

In the black: ChannelAdvisor reports record revenue, a profit for 2021