Covidien Announces Share Repurchase Program of up to $2B

Covidien plc COV today announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a program to purchase up to $2 billion of the Company's ordinary shares from time to time, based on market conditions. In the twelve months ending June 2011, Covidien has returned more than $1 billion to shareholders in dividends and share repurchases, representing more than 50% of its free cash flow. This is well above the Company's stated annual goal of returning 25% to 40% of free cash flow to shareholders.