Ethereum treasury company SharpLink Gaming (NASDAQ: SBET), shared today that it bought back one million shares of its own stock at an average price of $16.67 as part of its ongoing $1.5 billion buyback program.
The Minneapolis-based firm has now bought back around 1.93 million shares, spending nearly $32 million since the initiative was approved in August, according to the release.
SharpLink said its treasury has expanded to 838,152 ETH, valued at approximately $3.7 billion based on current prices. This total includes 922 ETH added since August 31 and 3,240 ETH earned from staking since June, equal to about $14.4 million. The company stakes nearly all of its holdings and emphasized that it carries no debt.
“We continue to be focused on stockholder value,” co-CEO Joseph Chalom said in the press release. “By expanding our ETH concentration, we are reinforcing our commitment to align the long-term interests of SharpLink, Ethereum and our shareholders, while showcasing how digital assets can be responsibly and strategically deployed to drive meaningful value creation.”
But despite this, the price of the company’s shares has dropped briefly by 0.86% to $16.65 today, adding to a drop of more than 19% over the past month.
The company disclosed its first buyback on September 9 and said it will only purchase shares when its net asset value (NAV) falls below 1, which it considers a signal of being undervalued. Its current NAV stands at 0.91x, which shows that the stock price is underperforming compared to the Ethereum it holds.
“The Company continues to believe its common stock is significantly undervalued in the market, and that stock repurchases represent the best method to maximize stockholder value under current market conditions,” SharpLink said.
SharpLink is the second-largest Ethereum treasury among publicly traded firms, behind BitMine Immersion Technologies, which holds more than 2.1 million ETH valued at about $9.3 billion.
The repurchase program is funded with cash on hand, income from staking, and other financing options. Other firms are also moving in a similar direction. For instance, Ethereum treasury ETHZilla authorized a $250 million buyback in August, while Bitcoin treasury firm Strive announced a $500 million repurchase plan earlier this week.
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