Common Stock
12 Months Ended
Oct. 31, 2011
Common Stock Repurchases Disclosure [Abstract]  
Common Stock Repurchases

14. Common Stock

 

All outstanding shares of the Company's Voting Common Stock are deposited in a voting trust, the trustees of which have unrestricted voting rights with respect to the Voting Common Stock. The trustees of the voting trust are all officers of the Company. Non-Voting Common shares do not have voting rights under any circumstances. In fiscal 2011, the Company did not issue or repurchase any shares of its Voting Common Stock.

 

The Company's current share repurchase program was announced on October 26, 2011. The Board authorized management to repurchase and retire up to 8.0 million shares of its Non-Voting Common Stock on the open market and in private transactions in accordance with applicable securities laws. The timing and the amount of shares for each purchase are subject to management's discretion. The Company's share repurchase program is not subject to an expiration date.

 

In fiscal 2011, the Company purchased and retired approximately 7.3 million shares of its Non-Voting Common Stock under previous repurchase authorizations and 20,352 shares of its Non-Voting Common Stock under the current authorization. Substantially all of the current 8.0 million share repurchase authorization remains unused.