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Hello reader,
Maximizing shareholder value has become a bit of a grubby phrase, thanks in no small part to internet meme culture. After all, it’s hard to be motivated to make the rich richer when you’re holding down a pretty boring 9 to 5 job (I speak from past experience).
But online loathing aside, this is what stewards of publicly listed companies are tasked with doing. To be sure, it’s not their only mission, but it’s likely a top priority.
In this week’s Big Story, my colleague Simon dives into share buybacks, a practice designed to boost a company’s share price and return capital to shareholders.
Simon analyzed 12 of Asia’s biggest tech firms but found little correlation between a share buyback and share performance. If anything, the companies that didn’t purchase their own shares performed better over time.
As the full piece shows, share buybacks are no silver bullet for poor operational performance.
— Peter
THE BIG STORY
Image credit: Timmy Loen
Asia tech firms go big on buybacks, but outcomes are mixed
Our sample of 12 Asian tech companies suggests that, over the past six months, those that did not announce buybacks outperformed those that did.
3 Trends to keep an eye on
Hot stocks, earnings reports, restructuring, pressure from activist investors, and more.
Tim Cook during his 2024 visit to Indonesia / Photo credit: Tim Cook’s X account
1️⃣ An Apple investment a day keeps the doctor away: Apple (AAPL, Nasdaq) CEO Tim Cook has been touring Southeast Asia in the past week and wherever he went, promises of investment have followed.
2 Eye-popping facts
The one you didn’t see coming
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