Googled it and found this, “ Stock buybacks can be considered a form of "yield" or return of capital to shareholders, although it's not a direct cash payment like a dividend.
Here's a breakdown:
Yield in finance refers to the returns an investor gets from holding an asset, usually expressed as a percentage of the investment.
Dividends are a classic form of yield, where a company directly distributes profits to shareholders, typically in cash, according to Medical Economics.
Stock buybacks (or share repurchases) involve a company buying back its own outstanding shares from the market.
This reduces the number of shares in circulation, which can increase the value of the remaining shares.
It also improves per-share metrics like earnings per share (EPS), according to Bankrate.
This ultimately increases the ownership percentage of each remaining share and can enhance the stock's potential upside.
Shareholder Yield is a broader metric that encompasses not only dividend payments but also stock buybacks and debt reduction, providing a more complete picture of how a company returns value to its investors.
In essence
Stock buybacks increase the value of current shareholders' investments by reducing the number of outstanding shares and improving key financial metrics, which can lead to higher stock prices.
This represents a less direct but potentially more tax-efficient way of returning value to shareholders compared to dividends.
Therefore, while not a traditional "yield" in the form of a direct cash payment, stock buybacks are a significant component of shareholder yield and represent a way a company returns value to its current shareholders. “