
Do Stock Buybacks Really Shrink Capital Spending?
Thanks to soaring corporate cash, capex has improved lately, but share repurchases still overshadow it.
The once-popular repurchases look wasteful today, but once the economy improves, their appeal may well spring back.
The financial meltdown 10 years ago had long-lasting effects that aren’t going away.
Vermont senator calls them wasteful, while Lloyd Blankfein lauds repurchases as an ultimate economy booster.
As rates rise, company share repurchases using leverage dipped to 14% of total in 2018, half the 2017 level, JPMorgan says.
This further fuels the debate over whether corporate America favors investors now or its long-term future.