Amazon's stock buybacks explained

Companies repurchase banal erstwhile they’re feeling optimistic astir the aboriginal prospects of their company. Amazon is nary exception, and the world’s biggest online retailer has bought backmost billions of dollars' worthy of shares successful caller years. With a marketplace capitalization of much than $2.5 trillion, and hundreds of billions of dollars successful income generated, Amazon is simply a tech-sector powerhouse.

Here’s however overmuch Amazon has repurchased successful stock.

How overmuch has Amazon repurchased successful stock?

Since Amazon went nationalist successful 1997, it has implemented lone 1 banal repurchase program.

Its sole banal repurchase programme was a $10 cardinal buyback announced successful March 2022, erstwhile the banal had slipped from grounds highs. As of 2025, it said it had $6.1 cardinal successful buybacks remaining, and the buyback programme has nary expiration date.

Related: Amazon's dividends and banal splits: What you request to know

Why does Amazon repurchase its stock?

Amazon whitethorn beryllium feeling optimistic astir its aboriginal arsenic it buys backmost shares. The retailer whitethorn repurchase stock, typically erstwhile stock prices are low, arsenic portion of a program to reward employees for gathering institution interior performance-based goals.

After a institution buys backmost its ain stock, the shares are transferred to treasury stock. The institution tin past contented banal options oregon restricted banal units (RSUs) to employees arsenic portion of a compensation plan, and those shares typically travel from its treasury stock.

When those shares go unrestricted, they past signifier portion of the company’s outstanding stock.

Treasury shares and banal awards

After buying backmost banal successful 2022, Amazon recorded communal banal repurchases of $6 billion, and its treasury banal roseate to $7.837 cardinal from $1.837 cardinal successful 2021, according to its 2022 yearly report.

In 2024, Amazon awarded a full of 117 cardinal shares arsenic portion of compensation to its 4 apical non-CEO executives: Brian T. Olsavsky, main fiscal officer; Matthew S. Garman, CEO of Amazon Web Services; Douglas J. Herrington, CEO of Worldwide Amazon Stores; and David A. Zapolsky, main planetary affairs and ineligible officer.

How bash Amazon shareholders payment from banal repurchases?

Buying backmost banal besides dilutes a company’s outstanding shares. A smaller fig of outstanding shares could boost net per share.

Still, buying backmost banal puts Amazon successful a conundrum. When Amazon announced its repurchasing program successful 2022, it was besides implementing a banal split, and stock prices were down from their grounds highs acceptable successful 2021 — slipping successful January 2023 to their lowest since 2010.

From 2023, the banal was connected a rebound — mounting grounds highs starting successful 2024, and those precocious prices made it costly for Amazon to repurchase shares.