Could be that was the case.
Some of these "larger" company buybacks stay under the radar. Individuals like Warren Buffett buyback all the time. His disclosures of what he repurchased remains quiet and is then reported sometime later.
A reporting may take a quarter or longer, or even longer! His claim (defense) for this is that it is part of his business strategy and remains confidential until he deems it necessary to report it. (He does identify before hand that the buy back will be taking place though).
I my opinion, that is understandable because if the public and competitors see how his repurchase plan is rolled out, he can move the "market" at the wrong time and spoil his chances to achieve his objectives. It appears the SEC is on board with this plan. (I've read this many times, and he even talks about it at his shareholders meetings).
It could be possible BTU and other large corporations could be using this method as well.
I guess, the best way to understand their motives and methods, is to record the movements and take notes. (But BTU and others seem to be very open in their processes).
Per share dollar amounts at this point are only useful to me as charting data in a long term chart. Once one gets into the numbers of shares out there (volumes), and how they are distributed are really no use to me in the short term. I do watch them some times, but very little.
(When the volumes are high, I look to see how the public reacts. The public usually reacts in an emotional manner. So I look to see what the noise is and how it moved the masses, and take some notes. That's all).
All (IMO) of course.
GO-BTU
GO-COAL
GO-NATURAL GAS
GO-OIL
GO-CO2
GO-WOOD
GO
