Yahoo leaning toward dividend, buyback

Yahoo! Inc. is considering selling its Asian assets and redistributing the proceeds to shareholders, rather than selling itself to a group of buyers, Bloomberg News reported Friday citing five people familiar with the situation. This scenario would let the company eventually pay a special dividend or buy back shares, the people said.

The stock has surged 28% since the company fired Chief Executive Officer Carol Bartz in early September, making it a more expensive target for private-equity buyers, the people told Bloomberg. Dana Lengkeek, a spokeswoman for Yahoo, declined to comment, according to Bloomberg.

---