Meta's stock buybacks: How the company's AI spending could affect shareholder returns
For years, Meta has rewarded shareholders with one of the biggest stock buyback programs in history. But as the company pours hundreds of billions of dollars into artificial intelligence, investors are asking a new question: Has Meta's AI strategy changed how the company returns cash to shareholders?
Here's what investors need to know about Meta's history of share repurchases, why the program is on pause, and whether additional buybacks are likely in the company's future.
What are stock buybacks?
Along with dividends, share buybacks are a way for a company to return excess cash to shareholders.
That's because every time a company repurchases shares, it reduces the number of shares outstanding, giving shareholders a slightly larger ownership stake.
And because earnings are divided among fewer shares, buybacks can increase earnings per share (EPS), as long as the company's earnings continue to grow. Higher earnings per share often drive a company's stock price higher, rewarding shareholders with capital gains.
How much stock has Meta repurchased?
In the past 5 years, Meta Platforms (META) has returned an impressive $156 billion to shareholders through stock buybacks and dividends. The bulk of this -$145 billion-was through share repurchases.
This makes Meta one of the top 10 companies of all time in terms of capital returned to shareholders.
Top 10 stocks by total shareholder return
| Company | Total $ returned | % of market cap | Via dividends | Via share repurchases |
|---|---|---|---|---|
AAPL | $508 billion | 11.8% | $76 billion | $432 billion |
GOOGL | $288 billion | 6.9% | $20 billion | $268 billion |
MSFT | $223 billion | 8.2% | $108 billion | $115 billion |
JPM | $181 billion | 19.9% | $72 billion | $108 billion |
XOM | $157 billion | 27.3% | $79 billion | $78 billion |
META | $156 billion | 11.1% | $12 billion | $145 billion |
BAC | $129 billion | 30.8% | $45 billion | $84 billion |
NVDA | $116 billion | 2.4% | $3.1 billion | $113 billion |
CVX | $116 billion | 34.0% | $58 billion | $57 billion |
WFC | $108 billion | 41.6% | $23 billion | $85 billion |
Source: Trefis
Meta's massive buybacks reflected the company's ability to generate enormous amounts of cash through its highly profitable advertising business. It also signaled the company's overall financial strength as well as management's confidence in the future.
Meta's stock buyback history
Meta didn't become one of Wall Street's biggest stock repurchasers overnight, but thanks to those cash flows from its ad business, the company routinely returned billions of dollars to shareholders through share buybacks.
The table below illustrates how this strategy evolved:
| Buyback date | Buyback amount |
|---|---|
3/31/17 | $228.45M |
6/30/17 | $180.01M |
9/30/17 | $629.96M |
12/31/17 | $1.03B |
3/31/18 | $1.92B |
6/30/18 | $3.21B |
9/30/18 | $4.26B |
12/31/18 | $3.54B |
3/31/19 | $521.81M |
6/30/19 | $1.13B |
9/30/19 | $1.15B |
12/31/19 | $1.30B |
3/31/20 | $1.24B |
6/30/20 | $1.38B |
9/30/20 | $1.73B |
12/31/20 | $1.94B |
3/31/21 | $4.11B |
6/30/21 | $7.15B |
9/30/21 | $14.37B |
12/31/21 | $19.18B |
3/31/22 | $9.39B |
6/30/22 | $5.08B |
9/30/22 | $6.55B |
12/31/22 | $6.91B |
3/31/23 | $9.14B |
6/30/23 | $811.24M |
9/30/23 | $3.69B |
12/31/23 | $6.29B |
3/31/24 | $14.53B |
6/30/24 | $6.30B |
9/30/24 | $8.82B |
3/31/25 | $13.33B |
6/30/25 | $9.72B |
9/30/25 | $3.20B |
Source: TipRanks.com
Why did Meta pause its stock buybacks?
But according to SEC filings, Meta reported zero share repurchases during the first quarter of 2026. Although it paused its buybacks, Meta actually increased its capital expenditure guidance for artificial intelligence initiatives. The timing raises questions as to why the company is shifting more of its cash to fund AI infrastructure instead of rewarding shareholders.
At least for now, Meta seems to be making a tough capital allocation decision.
Related: How many employees does Meta have in 2026? Its workforce, locations, & layoffs explained
In fact, CNBC reported that Meta was even considering a stock sale to raise additional capital for its AI ambitions, after Alphabet (GOOG) announced it was increasing its equity offering to $85 billion.
While a Meta spokesperson called the report "pure speculation," it does reflect the issue at hand. Every dollar the company spends on share repurchases is a dollar it can't invest in AI infrastructure - and vice versa.
Can Meta afford its AI plans?
When Meta posted its first quarter earnings, it announced plans to increase its 2026 capital expenditure budget to between $125 billion to $145 billion. Shares dropped roughly 10% on the news.
Meta increased this guidance due to rising costs for its AI data centers and component pricing, but Wall Street viewed the spending as another case of "slow ROI."
However, Meta's first-quarter earnings reflected a company with a "fortress-like" balance sheet - and not a business in distress.
Related: Has Meta conducted a stock split? What sets this ‘Mag 7' stock apart
Meta's total revenue rose 33% to $56.3 billion, thanks to more hefty increases in its advertising business. It also reported a robust 41% operating margin, which will help it absorb the costs of its AI infrastructure buildout. In addition, it posted $81 billion in cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities, and $12.4 billion in free cash flow.
Meta's investing big bucks so it can dominate artificial intelligence, and with the successful launch of Muse Spark 1.1 on July 9, 2026, the company is already beginning to demonstrate that not only can it afford its agentic AI - it can monetize it as well.
Will Meta resume its stock buybacks in the future?
Investors will be watching closely to see when - orif - Meta resumes its share repurchase program.
More on tech stocks:
- Nvidia's stock split history: Everything you need to know
- AMD's stock buybacks explained: History, balance & outlook
- Does Intel pay dividends? History & future prospects explained
But the bigger question is whether the company's massive AI investments can ultimately generate greater long-term value than its buybacks.
For more insights on how management plans to balance its AI spending with future shareholder returns, investors should tune into Meta's second quarter earnings call on July 29, 2026.
Related: Does Meta pay dividends? Its yield & payouts explained
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This story was originally published July 16, 2026 at 11:40 AM.