Miller Tabak Comments on PNRA's Buyback Plan

Friday, June 6, 2014, Miller Tabak published a comment this morning about

, regarding the firm's new three-year, $600 million share buyback that is set to expire in August 2015. Panera's new authorized buyback will replace the firm's current buyback plan that was originally planned to expire in August 2012. Miller Tabak analyst Stephen Anderson argues, the new stock repurchase agreement supports the case for buybacks to act as a share price catalyst. Anderson expects a modestly positive reaction today to the news, that Panera will continue to buy back shares at its current pace. Anderson thinks management will continue to be opportunistic in buying back shares, thus limiting any potential downside in the share price. Anderson also models Panera's free cash flow yield to be enough that, alongside Panera's capital spending and continued buybacks, Panera will have no need to access the public debt markets. Anderson estimates EPS to remain unchanged at $1.76 for the second-quarter of June, and $7.02 for fiscal-year of 2014. Panera shares have been trading up 1.34 percent to 157.87 since the market opened this morning.