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UBS Announces a New Share Repurchase Program of Up to $6B
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UBS Group AG (UBS - Free Report) recently announced a new share repurchase program for 2022, commencing on Mar 31, of up to $6 billion of common stock, valid for two years.
This share buyback plan aside, in the first quarter of 2021, UBS had launched a new three-year share repurchase program of up to CHF 4 billion. Under this plan, the company has repurchased 240 million shares for CHF 3.8 billion via a separate trading line on the SIX Swiss Exchange. This represents 6.49% of the current registered share capital of the bank. Of the total repurchase volume, shares worth CHF 1.5 billion were bought back in the ongoing year.
By the end of 2022, UBS plans to execute up to $5 billion of repurchases under the new 2022 plan and the recently concluded 2021 buyback.
In March 2018, the company had launched a three-year share repurchase program, which ended on Feb 2, 2021. UBS repurchased 156.6 million shares under this program.
Share buybacks aside, the company intends to propose an annual dividend of 50 cents per share for 2021. Prior to this, in 2020, it had paid out a dividend of 37 cents per share. UBS is expected to keep enhancing shareholder value through such initiatives.
Although the company targets to return capital to its shareholders, its fluctuating quarterly performance and an unfavorable debt/equity ratio indicate that such capital deployments may not be sustainable in the long run.
Over the past six months, shares of UBS have rallied 23.4% on the NYSE, outperforming the 6.1% growth of the industry it belongs to.
Southside Bancshares, Inc. (SBSI - Free Report) announced a share repurchase plan on Mar 4, 2022. Its board of directors approved the repurchase of up to 1 million of SBSI’s outstanding shares. The new share buyback authorization comes with no expiration date.
The new repurchase plan replaces the previous one. On Mar 12, 2020, Southside Bancshares’ board of directors increased the authorization under the previous stock repurchase plan of September 2019 by an additional one million shares, increasing the buyback to up to two million shares.
Popular, Inc. (BPOP - Free Report) entered an accelerated share repurchase (ASR) agreement on Feb 28, 2022, to repurchase an aggregate of $400 million of the company’s common stock. This is part of BPOP’s plan to repurchase up to $500 million of its common stock as part of its planned capital actions for the ongoing year, as underlined this January.
Per the ASR agreement, on Mar 2, 2022, Popular was expected to have made an initial payment of $400 million to buy 3,483,942 shares of its common stock. This will be accounted for as a treasury stock transaction.
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UBS Announces a New Share Repurchase Program of Up to $6B
UBS Group AG (UBS - Free Report) recently announced a new share repurchase program for 2022, commencing on Mar 31, of up to $6 billion of common stock, valid for two years.
This share buyback plan aside, in the first quarter of 2021, UBS had launched a new three-year share repurchase program of up to CHF 4 billion. Under this plan, the company has repurchased 240 million shares for CHF 3.8 billion via a separate trading line on the SIX Swiss Exchange. This represents 6.49% of the current registered share capital of the bank. Of the total repurchase volume, shares worth CHF 1.5 billion were bought back in the ongoing year.
By the end of 2022, UBS plans to execute up to $5 billion of repurchases under the new 2022 plan and the recently concluded 2021 buyback.
In March 2018, the company had launched a three-year share repurchase program, which ended on Feb 2, 2021. UBS repurchased 156.6 million shares under this program.
Share buybacks aside, the company intends to propose an annual dividend of 50 cents per share for 2021. Prior to this, in 2020, it had paid out a dividend of 37 cents per share. UBS is expected to keep enhancing shareholder value through such initiatives.
Although the company targets to return capital to its shareholders, its fluctuating quarterly performance and an unfavorable debt/equity ratio indicate that such capital deployments may not be sustainable in the long run.
Over the past six months, shares of UBS have rallied 23.4% on the NYSE, outperforming the 6.1% growth of the industry it belongs to.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Currently, UBS Group carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Capital Deployment Actions Taken by Other Banks
Southside Bancshares, Inc. (SBSI - Free Report) announced a share repurchase plan on Mar 4, 2022. Its board of directors approved the repurchase of up to 1 million of SBSI’s outstanding shares. The new share buyback authorization comes with no expiration date.
The new repurchase plan replaces the previous one. On Mar 12, 2020, Southside Bancshares’ board of directors increased the authorization under the previous stock repurchase plan of September 2019 by an additional one million shares, increasing the buyback to up to two million shares.
Popular, Inc. (BPOP - Free Report) entered an accelerated share repurchase (ASR) agreement on Feb 28, 2022, to repurchase an aggregate of $400 million of the company’s common stock. This is part of BPOP’s plan to repurchase up to $500 million of its common stock as part of its planned capital actions for the ongoing year, as underlined this January.
Per the ASR agreement, on Mar 2, 2022, Popular was expected to have made an initial payment of $400 million to buy 3,483,942 shares of its common stock. This will be accounted for as a treasury stock transaction.