Tap the Stock Buyback Trend With PKW ETF
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: May 08 2024
0mins
Source: NASDAQ.COM
- Stock Buybacks Surge: Stock buybacks have rebounded strongly, with companies announcing repurchases exceeding $383 billion in the last 13 weeks, up 30% from the previous year.
- Major Companies' Buyback Announcements: Apple led with a $110 billion share repurchase, followed by Alphabet's $70 billion and Uber's first-ever $7 billion buyback after posting its first annual net profit since going public.
- Earnings Season Impact: U.S. companies are experiencing their best earnings season in nearly two years, with buybacks likely to boost earnings per share and drive stock prices higher.
- Invesco BuyBack Achievers ETF: Investors can consider the Invesco BuyBack Achievers ETF (PKW) to capitalize on the buyback trend, tracking companies that have reduced shares outstanding by 5% or more.
- ETF Details: PKW tracks the NASDAQ US Buyback Achievers Index, holding 203 stocks with top sectors in consumer discretionary and financials, making it a popular fund in the buyback space.
Trade with 70% Backtested Accuracy
Stop guessing "Should I Buy GOOG?" and start using high-conviction signals backed by rigorous historical data.
Sign up today to access powerful investing tools and make smarter, data-driven decisions.
Analyst Views on GOOG
Wall Street analysts forecast GOOG stock price to fall
15 Analyst Rating
14 Buy
1 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 367.110
Low
255.00
Averages
336.08
High
400.00
Current: 367.110
Low
255.00
Averages
336.08
High
400.00
About GOOG
Alphabet Inc. is a holding company. The Company's segments include Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets. The Google Services segment includes products and services such as ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Google Maps, Google Play, Search, and YouTube. The Google Cloud segment includes infrastructure and platform services, collaboration tools, and other services for enterprise customers. Its Other Bets segment is engaged in the sale of healthcare-related services and Internet services. Its Google Cloud provides enterprise-ready cloud services, including Google Cloud Platform and Google Workspace. Google Cloud Platform provides access to solutions such as artificial intelligence (AI) offerings, including its AI infrastructure, Vertex AI platform, and Gemini for Google Cloud; cybersecurity, and data and analytics. Google Workspace includes cloud-based communication and collaboration tools for enterprises, such as Calendar, Gmail, Docs, Drive, and Meet.
About the author

Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.

- Historic Funding: Ineffable Intelligence has secured a historic $1.1 billion seed round, the largest in European history, underscoring its ambitious goals and market potential in the AI sector.
- Strategic Partnership: The collaboration with Google Cloud will leverage its high-performance computing capabilities and AI-optimized technology to advance the development of a 'superlearner', aiming to achieve intelligence that transcends human capabilities.
- Infrastructure Advantage: This partnership will enable Ineffable to deploy one of the largest A5X clusters powered by NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72 GPUs on Google Cloud, providing massive computational scale to support real-time experience-based learning.
- European AI Ecosystem: The collaboration positions Ineffable Intelligence as a cornerstone of Europe's AI ecosystem, attracting top engineering talent to tackle the world's most complex technical challenges and drive industry innovation.
See More
- Transparency Enhancement Requirement: The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) mandates Google to improve transparency and fairness in search result rankings, ensuring users and businesses can effectively raise concerns, thereby promoting market competition.
- Data Portability Regulation: The new rules require Google to allow users to transfer their search data to authorized third-party platforms, enhancing user control over their data and improving user experience and satisfaction.
- Implementation Timeline: Google has six months to implement the fair ranking requirement and three months to comply with the data portability requirement, with the CMA monitoring compliance through regular reporting and ongoing engagement with stakeholders.
- Market Reaction: Following the announcement of the new regulations, Alphabet's (GOOG) stock price fell 0.7% in premarket trading to $369.00, reflecting market concerns over regulatory pressures that could impact the company's future profitability.
See More
- Market Challenges for PayPal: PayPal's stock has fallen 32% over the past three years, and despite having 439 million active accounts, it faces fierce competition from companies like Apple and Alphabet, leading to declining margins and ineffective user engagement.
- User Growth of SoFi: SoFi's user base has surged from 5.22 million in 2022 to 14.70 million today, nearly tripling, while PayPal only added 3 million active accounts in the past year, translating to a mere 0.6% growth, highlighting SoFi's advantage in attracting younger consumers.
- Profitability Comparison: SoFi trades at nearly 30 times earnings, with an expected annual growth rate of 31% over the next three to five years, compared to PayPal's less than 8 times earnings and a growth rate of only 7% to 8%, indicating SoFi may be more attractive for long-term investors.
- Investment Risk Assessment: While SoFi's business model carries higher risks, including potential loan defaults and interest rate fluctuations, its superior market execution compared to PayPal positions it as a more appealing investment choice in the current competitive landscape.
See More
- User Growth Comparison: PayPal boasts approximately 439 million active accounts, adding 3 million in the past year, translating to a mere 0.6% growth, indicating stagnation; in contrast, SoFi's user base surged from 5.22 million in 2022 to 14.7 million today, nearly tripling and showcasing strong market appeal.
- Changing Competitive Landscape: With giants like Apple and Alphabet entering the digital wallet space, PayPal faces fierce competition that has led to declining margins, particularly as its white-label payment business has not compensated for the profitability drop in its branded checkout segment, impacting overall financial health.
- Leadership Changes Impact: PayPal hired Intuit's CEO Alex Chriss in 2023 to rejuvenate its branded checkout business but fired him earlier this year; new CEO Enrique Lores will leverage his experience at HP to tackle market challenges, and this frequent leadership turnover may affect the coherence of the company's strategy.
- Investment Risks and Opportunities: While SoFi's valuation approaches 30 times 2026 earnings estimates, posing significant investment risks, its projected average earnings growth of 31% far exceeds PayPal's 7% to 8%, suggesting that SoFi may emerge as a more attractive long-term investment despite inherent loan risks in its business model.
See More
- Record IPO Financing: SpaceX went public on June 12, raising an unprecedented $75 billion, nearly tripling the previous record, with a market cap of $2.1 trillion, making it the seventh-largest public company in the U.S., indicating strong market confidence in its future potential.
- Analyst Optimism: KGI Securities' Rob Chang set a price target of $227 for SpaceX, representing a 41% upside, projecting a valuation of $2.97 trillion, which would surpass Amazon and Microsoft, reflecting recognition of its leading position in the space economy.
- Innovation and Cost Advantages: The development of SpaceX's reusable rocket, Starship, is expected to lower launch costs and create multiple revenue streams, particularly driven by demand for Starlink satellites and data center computing, potentially achieving superior margins.
- Market Risk Warning: While short-term factors like inclusion in the Nasdaq-100 may boost stock prices, historical data shows that large IPOs typically face a 55% drawdown in their first year, prompting investors to approach SpaceX's high valuation and potential bubble risks with caution.
See More
- Record IPO: SpaceX went public on June 12, raising $75 billion, nearly tripling the previous record for IPOs, with a market cap of $2.1 trillion, positioning it as the seventh-largest public company in the U.S., highlighting its leadership in the space economy.
- Analyst Optimism: Rob Chang from KGI Securities rated SpaceX as outperform with a price target of $227, indicating a 41% upside from its first-day close, reflecting market expectations for its future growth potential.
- Innovation-Driven Growth: The development of SpaceX's reusable rocket, Starship, is expected to reduce launch costs and create multiple revenue streams, particularly in the context of increasing demand for Starlink satellites and data center computing, potentially leading to superior margins.
- Historical Challenges: Despite the market's optimism for SpaceX's future, historical data shows that the largest tech IPOs over the past 14 years have averaged a 55% drawdown in their first year, indicating that investors should be cautious about the risks of high valuations.
See More










