FYI: Buybacks have been an important element of the U.S. stock bull run since the lows of 2009. And there looks to be a crescendo of heavy buyback activity this year, with about $835 billion announced so far.
Stock bought back in the first half of 2018 rose 49.9% to $379.7 billion from $253.3 billion in the same period a year earlier, according to Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst at S&P Dow Jones Indices. Buybacks were also the subject of a Barron’s cover story not long ago.
Companies like to do buybacks because they return cash to shareholders in a tax-efficient manner and reduce the amount of stock outstanding, which boosts earnings per share without management necessarily increasing profits. Investors tend to like them, but their long-term value remains debatable.
Regards,
Ted
https://www.barrons.com/articles/stock-buybacks-arent-delivering-the-usual-bang-for-the-buck-1539374204?mod=hp_DAY_1
