Nike Inc., coming off its most profitable year ever, plans to buy back $12 billion in stock and split its shares 2-for-1.
The new four-year buyback plan will take effect when the current $8 billion authorization is completed, which is expected to occur before the end of the current fiscal year, Beaverton, Ore.-based Nike said Thursday. The stock split will be in the form of a 100 percent stock dividend payable on Dec. 23 to holders of record as of Dec. 9.
Shares rose 5.44 percent to $132.62 on Friday.
The company, which last split its stock in December 2012, also increased its quarterly dividend to 32 cents a share from 28 cents.
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Nike's stock has more than tripled since the end of the last recession, bolstered by the company taking market share from Adidas AG in soccer and increasing its presence in China and South America. Nike has also benefited from streamlining its operations.