Japanese tech investor SoftBank Group plans to buy back $3.4 billion in shares, partially responding to calls from Elliott Management and other investors to boost its stock price. SoftBank, led by Masayoshi Son, has faced pressure to repurchase shares as its market capitalization is significantly lower than the combined value of its assets.
Over the next year, SoftBank will buy back up to 6.8% of its shares, worth up to 500 billion yen. Elliott had pushed for a $15 billion buyback program and rebuilt a stake worth over $2 billion.
SoftBank reported a narrower quarterly net loss of 174.3 billion yen, compared to a 477.6 billion yen loss a year earlier, and a net income of 10.5 billion yen for the period. The company, with $26 billion in cash as of March, is rebuilding finances after setbacks, including WeWork’s failure and declining tech investments. Despite recent market turmoil, SoftBank’s shares have recovered from a 20% drop.