Guessing they already know that they really have to hit Q4 out of the park. Probably why there was so much debt paid down in Q2 and they can pretty well guess in advance based on forward bookings what it will look like. Also a lot of "revenue initiatives" really rev up that quarter. Not saying anyone is cooking the books, but a good CFO can definitely move things around to blow a single quarter out of the water. That would coincide with a big stock bump and Elliot's departure just as their cease fire agreement with the board is coming to an end.
They will be forced to pay a big dividend to go along with the buybacks as well. The company will survive just fine, but their cash reserves will be way lower than years past.