H&R Block Inc. (HRB) reported that its fourth-quarter net income declined to $586.10 million or $1.99 per share, from $658.56 million or $2.14 per share in the same quarter last year. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $2.05 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.
Revenues for the quarter were $2.00 billion, compared to $2.05 billion in the prior year quarter. Four analysts had consensus revenue estimate of $2.01 billion for the quarter.
In fiscal 2012, the company repurchased and retired 14.6 million shares of its common stock at an aggregate price of $200.0 million, or $13.74 per share, including the repurchase of 1.5 million shares during the fourth quarter. At April 30, 292.1 million shares were outstanding.
During the first quarter of fiscal 2013 to-date, the company has repurchased and retired an additional 21.3 million shares at an aggregate price of $315.0 million, or $14.82 per share. As of today, 270.9 million shares are outstanding.
The company said it completed these share repurchases under a $2.0 billion share repurchase program approved by the company's board of directors in June 2008. Under this program, the company has repurchased shares of its common stock for an aggregate purchase price of $1.1 billion. Although the share repurchase program was originally scheduled to expire on June 30, 2012, the company's board recently voted to extend the expiration of the program until June 30, 2015, H&R Block said.
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