HickoryTech Corporation announced that it purchased 300,000 shares of HTCO common stock for $1.8 million in block transactions handled through market makers in the NASDAQ system. The stock was acquired from the company’s largest institutional shareholder.

“We are pleased to have this opportunity to acquire and fully retire these shares at historically low prices,” said John Finke, president and chief executive officer at HickoryTech.

This is the first HickoryTech acquisition of its shares since 2003. HickoryTech will have 13,067,000 shares outstanding after this transaction. The Company has no formal share repurchase plan.

About HickoryTech

HickoryTech Corporation (NASDAQ: HTCO), headquartered in Mankato, Minn., offers integrated communication products and services to business and residential customers over a regional fiber network. The company, founded in 1898, has approximately 430 employees. The Telecom Sector, with facilities-based operations in Minnesota and Iowa, offers local voice, long distance, high-speed Internet, Digital TV, and IP networking services to residential and business customers. In addition, the Telecom Sector develops telecom and carrier access billing solutions and customer management systems. A Hickory Tech subsidiary, Enventis, provides IP-based voice, data, and network solutions to businesses across a five-state region.

For more information, please visit their website: http://www.hickorytech.com