Share buybacks got off to a slow start in 2020, with the $13.7 billion total in January the lowest since 2013.Buybacks have been a major driver of performance in the nearly 11-year-old bull market.
Companies in January announced just $13.7 billion of repurchases, the slowest opener since 2013 and coming off a 2019 that saw a 30% drop-off from the previous year, according to AllianceBernstein. Despite a considerable bout of volatility, the market nonetheless had a solid January, rising about 1.2%."If this is a sign of a much lower run rate of buybacks it would be worrying given how dependent the market is on corporate buying of equities," AB strategist Mark Diver said in a note.
Diver sees a chance that some companies may have been holding off in January before announcing buybacks and may start ramping them up as opportunity presents itself.
Money going into capital spending and R & D is needed for the E part of the equation. Hocus Pocus by analysts is not a long term solution.
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Source: Reuters - 🏆 2. / 97 Read more »