See how much stock a company bought back, and how much room is left
Buyback information in a 10-K is scattered: Item 5 has a table of repurchases in the final quarter, the stockholders' equity note covers the full year and the program authorization, the cash flow statement shows the cash spent, and the MD&A may explain the strategy. Ask Search+ "How many shares did the company repurchase this year, under which program, and how much authorization remains?" and the cited answer points you to each source.
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Last updated October 2026
How to trace buybacks through a 10-K
- Upload the 10-K and the year's 10-Q filings
The Item 5 table only covers the fourth quarter. Each quarterly report has its own repurchase table, so adding the three 10-Qs, as the PDFs the company filed, gives you every quarter of the year in one workspace.
- Ask about the program first
Ask when the board authorized the current repurchase program, for how much, and whether it has an expiration date. Knowing the program makes the quarterly figures and the remaining capacity easier to interpret.
- Then ask about method and timing
Ask whether repurchases were made in the open market, through an accelerated share repurchase agreement or under a trading plan, and read the cited note. The method affects when shares are delivered and how the cost is recorded.
Buyback questions to ask of a 10-K
How many shares did the company repurchase during the fiscal year, and at what total cost?
How much remains available under the board's repurchase authorization at year end?
What does the issuer purchases table in Item 5 show for each month of the fourth quarter?
Does the footnote to the repurchase table say some shares were withheld to cover employee tax obligations rather than bought under the program?
Did the company enter into an accelerated share repurchase agreement, and how was the final share count settled?
Does the MD&A say how the company funded repurchases, and did it borrow to do so?
What to look for in buyback disclosures
The table of issuer purchases of equity securities usually shows, month by month for the last quarter, the shares bought, the average price paid, how many were bought under publicly announced programs and how much capacity remains.
Footnotes to the table often explain that some shares were withheld from employees to cover taxes on vesting stock awards. Those count as purchases in the table but are not program repurchases.
The stockholders' equity note gives the year's repurchases and the authorization history, and the financing section of the cash flow statement shows the cash paid. The MD&A may discuss buybacks within capital allocation.
A board authorization sets a ceiling, not an obligation. Filings commonly say the program may be suspended or ended at any time and has no set expiration, so read the wording for this company.
Open market purchases, accelerated share repurchase agreements, trading plans and tender offers are all used. Each has different timing and accounting, which the equity note usually describes.
Put the annual report and the quarterly filings in one workspace, ask across all of them, and each answer cites the filing and excerpt it drew on, so quarterly figures stay traceable.
Buyback wording and what to ask next
| Wording you may see | What it usually signals | A follow-up question |
|---|---|---|
| "Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities" | The fourth-quarter repurchase table in Item 5 | How many shares were bought under the announced program each month? |
| "approximate dollar value of shares that may yet be purchased" | Remaining authorization | When was the authorization approved, and does it expire? |
| "accelerated share repurchase" | Shares delivered up front, with final settlement later | When was the agreement settled, and how many more shares were received? |
| "Rule 10b5-1 trading plan" | Purchases made under a pre-set plan | Does the filing say when the plan was adopted? |
| "withheld to satisfy tax withholding obligations" | Purchases tied to employee stock awards | How many of the reported shares were withheld rather than repurchased? |
| "treasury stock" or "retired" | How repurchased shares are held or cancelled | Does the company hold the shares in treasury or retire them? |
What are share repurchases in a 10-K?
Share repurchases, or buybacks, are purchases by a company of its own stock. A 10-K reports them in Item 5, in a table of issuer purchases for the final quarter, and in the financial statements, which show the year's repurchases, the cash paid and the board's authorization.
Questions about buybacks in a 10-K
Why does the Item 5 table only show three months?
Can Search+ tell me how much buyback capacity is left?
How do I separate real buybacks from shares withheld for employee taxes?
Can I compare buyback activity over several years?
Does a big buyback mean I should buy the stock?
What if the share count in the answer looks wrong?
Follow the buyback from authorization to shares retired
Start a workspace, upload the 10-K and the year's 10-Qs, and ask how many shares the company bought back.
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