DETROIT - The board of Comerica Inc. has authorized the repurchase of up to five million company shares.
In a press release, Comerica said it intends to reissue up to 4,585,000 of the repurchased shares to stockholders of Pacific Western Bancshares Inc. in exchange for their Pacific Western stock. As a result, the Pacific Western acquisition will be accounted for as a purchase transaction, rather than a pooling of interests. The repurchase of shares and the accounting change will not affect the tax treatment of the transaction.
Shares not used for this purpose will be held in treasury for future corporate use at the discretion of the board, the company said.
As reported, Comerica reached a definitive agreement in September to acquire Pacific Western.
Comerica said the repurchase authorization provides it with an opportunity to acquire and reissue shares through various market transactions. Purchases of the shares may begin at any time, depending on market conditions.
