Officially a subscriber and enjoyed the article. But you haven’t convinced me that buybacks are bad for society!
I think your article rightfully highlights that corporate profits are well above historic norms (currently at 11%+ of US GDP vs. 7% historically), which has translated to wealth accumulation for business owners. I think it also rightfully calls out management abuse of share buybacks for personal benefit (which is also bad for shareholders). However, I disagree with the blanket attack on share buybacks. Share buybacks and dividends are just a mechanism for distributing corporate profits (which is your fundamental concern). They can create value for ongoing shareholders if shares are repurchased below fair value; they can also destroy value for ongoing shareholders if shares are repurchased above fair value (think of any company that bought back shares last year). I think the argument would be stronger to focus on your view of excessive corporate profits vs. share buybacks (a release valve for corporate profits).
Officially a subscriber and enjoyed the article. But you haven’t convinced me that buybacks are bad for society!
I think your article rightfully highlights that corporate profits are well above historic norms (currently at 11%+ of US GDP vs. 7% historically), which has translated to wealth accumulation for business owners. I think it also rightfully calls out management abuse of share buybacks for personal benefit (which is also bad for shareholders). However, I disagree with the blanket attack on share buybacks. Share buybacks and dividends are just a mechanism for distributing corporate profits (which is your fundamental concern). They can create value for ongoing shareholders if shares are repurchased below fair value; they can also destroy value for ongoing shareholders if shares are repurchased above fair value (think of any company that bought back shares last year). I think the argument would be stronger to focus on your view of excessive corporate profits vs. share buybacks (a release valve for corporate profits).