“Although we see the group's share buyback programme as shareholder-friendly, we believe it may not be the most efficient use of capital as the current share price is close to our valuation,” says Lee in an Aug 1 note.
Keppel’s net profit attributable to shareholders rose 24.2% y-o-y to $378 million in 1HFY2025 ended June 30, and the market has also “reacted positively” to the group’s $500 million share buyback programme, notes Morningstar Equity Research analyst Xavier Lee.
Keppel’s management has indicated that repurchased shares will be retained as treasury shares and used partially to fund employee share plans and future mergers and acquisitions.
