Dow Jones Newswires | Pactiv Corp. added 10 million shares to its share-buyback effort.

The company also announced the planned $200 million purchase of PWP
Industries, whose products include containers, trays and bottles. It
had 2009 revenue of about $140 million. The purchase, set to close this
quarter, is expected to “modestly” add to Pactiv’s 2010 earnings.

A host of firms in the past several months have announced new or increased repurchase efforts as fears ease about the need to hoard cash. Pactiv had about 134 million shares outstanding at the end of the fourth quarter.

Pactiv, which makes Hefty garbage bags and other packaging goods which held up well during the recession, said Tuesday that stock purchases, which can now total 10.5 million under the program, can be made from time to time, based on market conditions. It said shares can be purchased in the open market and through privately negotiated transactions.

Last month, Pactiv reported its fourth-quarter profit climbed 31% as both of the company’s segments recorded strong volume gains.

Shares closed at $22.74 and were inactive in after-hours trading.