Why Is Home Depot Spending $8 Billion on Stock Buybacks?

Home Depot (NYSE: HD) can't seem to get enough of its own stock. Executives a year ago set a target for $5 billion worth of share repurchases, but ended up spending $7 billion after changing their minds late in fiscal 2016.

A similar story is playing out this year. The home improvement retailer had told investors to expect $5 billion in share buybacks this year. Yet it just hiked that forecast in conjunction with its third-quarter earnings announcement in mid-November. Home Depot is now planning to spend $8 billion on its stock this year, including more than $2 billion in the fourth quarter. All else being equal, share buybacks raise earnings per share as there are fewer shares to split the earnings among, but investors always have to look at what's behind the company's decision to spend the money this way.

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Source: Fool.com