With shares at 52-week low, Red Hat moves to buy back $125M in stock

Raleigh, N.C. — Red Hat (NYSE: RHT) is moving to shore up its share price, announcing Monday that it will buy back $125 million in stock.

Red Hat shares closed down Monday $1.08, or 6.6 percent, at $15.33 – a new 52-week low. Shares fell more than 2 percent in after-hours trading.

RHT traded at $18.18 a week ago, and the Linux software developer and services provider announced earnings on Sept. 24 that exceeded Wall Street expectations. However, analysts questioned Red Hat’s recent acquisition of Qumranet, a developer of virtualization technology, and shares have declined since. Red Hat also lowered expectations for future revenues.

Red Hat reported Monday that as of Aug. 31, it had cash, cash equivalents and investments worth some $1.43 billion.