Nvidia returns $1 billion to shareholders

Nvidia told investors earlier at its annual analysts' day that it expects its Tegra mobile processor business to remain flat this year. They recovered after the buyback news, and were down just 0.5 percent at $12.77 in the afternoon.
Co-founder and CEO Jen-Hsun Huang said he expects Nvidia's mobile processor business to remain flat this year as the company focuses on upcoming chips with high-speed LTE technology attractive to smartphone makers.
As consumers increasingly choose tablets and smartphones over personal computers, Nvidia, with a market capitalization of about $8 billion, has been looking for ways to diversify beyond its core business of designing graphics chips for PCs.
Huang told investors his company has sacrificed some sales of its Tegra mobile chips in the near term in order to focus on integrating Long Term Evolution (LTE) features on upcoming versions, making them compatible with high-end carrier networks.
Combined with a slumping PC industry, that strategy is putting pressure on Nvidia in the first half of 2013, Huang told analysts at a conference.
"We're confident that as we go into the second half, growth will return," he said. "How do we feel about the Tegra business? … This year Tegra will be about flat."
Nvidia will return the cash to shareholders this fiscal year via previously announced dividends - about $50 million a quarter - and additional share buybacks. The $1 billion also includes $100 million in share buybacks this quarter.by noel randewich