Global buybacks up by 26.8 per cent
Share buybacks totalled $572.0 billion in the second quarter of 2026
Key points
Higher profitability in the technology and financial sectors is driving the growth in share buybacks globally. According to the latest Janus Henderson Global Dividend and Buyback Index, buybacks rose by 26.8 per cent year-on-year, reaching $572.0 billion in the second quarter of 2026. This trend has been driven, on the one hand, by major tech groups, which use buybacks as a flexible tool to return capital to shareholders; and, on the other hand, by banks, which, after years of focusing on growing dividends, are increasingly turning to buybacks to distribute excess capital.
At the same time, international dividend payments continued to show positive momentum, reaching $757.8 billion in the second quarter. Underlying growth in dividend payments stood at 7.3 per cent, with positive performance across all regions covered by the index. Nominal growth, however, stood at 3.2 per cent, mainly due to the timing of payments. The overall picture therefore continues to be characterised by companies’ strong ability to reward shareholders, underpinned by robust earnings and cash generation, particularly in the technology and financial sectors.
Looking at individual companies, the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Aramco) has once again proved itself to be the world’s leading dividend payer, accounting for a significant share of dividends paid out both in the Middle East and globally. NVIDIA, on the other hand, recorded the fastest growth in dividends paid, albeit starting from a very low dividend yield, confirming the company’s leading role in driving the expansion of artificial intelligence.
‘We are witnessing a shift in the way companies view capital returns. Dividends remain an important long-term commitment, but share buybacks offer management teams far greater flexibility to adapt to changing priorities. This flexibility is particularly important in the technology sector, where the scale of investment in artificial intelligence is forcing companies to balance returns for shareholders with significant capital requirements. “As these investment needs grow, share buybacks are likely to be the first lever companies turn to, rather than regular dividends,” comments Jane Shoemake, EMEA Equities CPM Lead at Janus Henderson.
The tech sector’s ‘expolit’
Growth was driven primarily by the technology sector, which overtook the financial sector to become the main source of share buybacks worldwide. In the second quarter of this year, companies in the sector bought back $121.1 billion worth of shares.
