Against the backdrop of regulators continuously guiding listed companies to utilize buyback tools to stabilize market expectations and boost investor confidence, A-share buyback activity significantly heated up in December 2025. The number of companies announcing new buyback plans and the total intended buyback amount both saw substantial growth compared to the previous month. Central state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and industry leaders became the market's focal point with their large-scale buyback plans, which included both emergency stabilization measures and confidence-boosting buybacks initiated at high stock price levels. Concurrently, researchers noted significant divergence in the execution pace among companies actively implementing buybacks: some industry leaders chose to pause and adopt a wait-and-see approach after reaching the minimum buyback threshold, while another group of companies lagged in progress as their buyback windows neared expiration, drawing market attention to issues like stock price constraints and delayed execution.
According to statistics from Tonghuashun iFinD, 35 companies announced new buyback plan proposals in December 2025, a nearly 60% increase from the 22 companies in November. Based on announcement data, the combined maximum intended buyback amount for these 35 companies was approximately 10.548 billion yuan, a 54.89% increase from November's 6.81 billion yuan, indicating a simultaneous significant rise in both the number of plans and the total amount. Notably, 24 companies had a maximum intended buyback amount exceeding 100 million yuan (inclusive), accounting for 68.57% of the total.
In terms of issuer type and industry standing, central SOEs and industry leaders were particularly prominent. China Metallurgical Group Corporation (MCC) and Dong-E-E-Jiao, both central SOEs, featured on the list of plan announcements. Companies with the highest intended buyback amounts were mostly benchmarks in their respective sectors: MCC, Luxshare Precision Industry Co., Ltd., ZTE Corporation, Zhongju High-tech, Nanshan Aluminum, and Yongtai Energy had maximum intended buyback amounts of 2.5 billion yuan (A-shares + H-shares), 2 billion yuan, 1.2 billion yuan, 600 million yuan, 600 million yuan, and 500 million yuan respectively, highlighting the financial strength and market responsibility of these leading firms.
Among them, MCC, a mega-sized construction central SOE under China Minmetals Corporation, plans to use its own funds to repurchase 1-2 billion yuan worth of A-shares and up to 500 million yuan worth of H-shares, with the repurchased shares intended for cancellation to reduce capital. Differing from the常规市值管理 operations of most listed companies, the market widely interpreted this buyback plan as an emergency "crisis management" move.
The buyback plan was announced just one week after an asset sale announcement by MCC on the evening of December 8, 2025, which caused significant market volatility. The infrastructure giant proposed selling multiple assets, including a 100% equity stake in MCC Real Estate Group and related creditor's rights, as well as equity stakes in several mining companies like the Nonferrous Metals Engineering and Research Institute and MCC Copper and Zinc, to its controlling shareholder, China Minmetals Corporation, and related parties for a total price of 60.676 billion yuan. Against the backdrop of持续走强的有色金属 prices, the company's move to divest its mining assets raised widespread market concern and anxiety. The market普遍认为 that剥离高价值矿产资源板块 would transform the company from a diversified enterprise with resource attributes back to an infrastructure-focused business centered on engineering contracts, potentially大幅压缩盈利增长想象空间. Market worries quickly translated into stock price pressure, with MCC's A-shares hitting the跌停 limit down and its H-shares closing down 21% on December 9th. To stabilize market sentiment, the company swiftly launched this large-scale buyback plan on December 18th, using real capital to convey confidence in the company's value and address market concerns.
Luxshare Precision Industry Co., Ltd., a leader in consumer electronics precision manufacturing, demonstrated its buyback resolve while its stock price was at a high level. After market close on December 31, 2025, the company announced a 1-2 billion yuan buyback plan, fulfilling a commitment made by its chairman back on April 9th of the same year. According to the announcement, funding sources include自有资金 or自筹资金 (including special loans for stock buybacks), with the repurchased shares intended for employee stock incentive plans or employee持股计划. The maximum buyback price was set at 86.96 yuan per share.
Notably, this buyback pricing demonstrates strong confidence. Luxshare's stock price had been climbing steadily after hitting a near-one-year low of 26.91 yuan on April 9, 2025, reaching an all-time high on September 24th of that year. Although it retreated somewhat afterwards, it remained in a high-level震荡 range. As of the close on January 9, 2026, the price was 55.65 yuan, having doubled from the previous low. Based on this, the current buyback price represents a 223.15% premium to the low on April 9, 2025, and a 56.26% premium to the closing price on January 9, 2026.
The confidence to conduct buybacks at high price levels stems from solid operational fundamentals and policy support. Financial data shows that Luxshare Precision achieved a net profit attributable to shareholders of 11.518 billion yuan in the first three quarters of 2025, a year-on-year increase of 26.92%. With total assets reaching 300.262 billion yuan, the maximum intended buyback amount of 2 billion yuan constitutes only 0.67% of total assets, and is not expected to significantly impact the company's operations, R&D, or debt servicing capabilities. Furthermore, the company had obtained a "Loan Commitment Letter" from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) Shenzhen Branch, securing access to up to 1.8 billion yuan in special buyback loans with a term not exceeding three years, making it the company with the highest loan额度 among those announcing plans that month.
Regarding the intended use of the buybacks, among the six aforementioned companies, only Luxshare Precision and ZTE Corporation plan to use the repurchased shares for employee持股计划 or stock incentives. The other four companies all opted for share cancellation to reduce capital. It is well known that cancellation-style buybacks directly reduce the total number of shares outstanding, thereby increasing earnings per share (assuming net profit remains constant), enhancing shareholder equity, and representing a more direct way to reward investors. This approach also aligns more closely with regulatory guidance for listed companies to strengthen shareholder returns. Through large-scale buybacks, industry leaders not only demonstrate their financial strength and send a clear "undervalued stock" signal to the market but also actively optimize their share capital structure, increase the value per share, and stabilize investor expectations.
Additionally, NovaStar Cloud, a domestic leader in LED display control and video processing systems, became a special case in the market due to its high-frequency buybacks, further highlighting the buyback enthusiasm. This company, which only listed in February 2024, announced its fourth buyback plan since IPO and its third plan for the year in December 2025, showing significantly higher buyback activity than its peers.
By reviewing its buyback history, researchers found that NovaStar Cloud not only announces buybacks frequently but also executes them with remarkable efficiency. The completed first three buyback cycles each took no more than three months, and all were completed at the maximum intended amount. Notably, the third buyback plan announced in August 2025 was executed between October 13th and November 17th, completing the full 150 million yuan buyback in just over a month. As of the end of December 2025, its fourth buyback plan announced in December had already commenced, with a cumulative repurchase amount of 62 million yuan.
Why are the company's buyback plans so密集? Will the latest buyback plan be completed at the maximum amount like previous ones? Researchers, posing as investors, called NovaStar Cloud's board secretary office. Relevant staff indicated that the primary aim is to convey confidence in the industry's and the company's future development, as well as recognition of its own value. Regarding whether the new buyback would be completed at the maximum amount, they stated it would depend on a comprehensive assessment of various factors and could not be confirmed at present.
In contrast to the火热 of new buyback proposals, the execution pace among companies actively implementing buybacks showed significant divergence. According to Tonghuashun data, approximately 290 companies disclosed their latest buyback progress announcements as of the end of December 2025. Among these, about 127 companies had already reached the minimum cumulative buyback amount specified in their plans, indicating relatively high overall推进效率.
On the list of cumulative buyback amounts, several major industry leaders still dominated, but a notable characteristic was the suspension of buybacks after reaching the minimum threshold. Companies like Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL), XCMG Machinery, SF Holding, Midea Group, and Sany Heavy Industry had cumulative buyback amounts as of end-December 2025 reaching 4.386 billion yuan, 3.05 billion yuan (across two phases), 1.542 billion yuan, 1.51 billion yuan, and 1.355 billion yuan respectively, all having met their minimum intended buyback amounts.
It is worth noting that, except for SF Holding, which repurchased 243 million yuan worth of shares in December 2025 alone, the other four leaders did not execute any buybacks that month. Among them, CATL and XCMG Machinery had recorded zero buybacks for three consecutive months since last October, while Midea Group and Sany Heavy Industry had paused their buybacks for as long as six months since last July.
Regarding whether they would continue or increase buybacks subsequently, staff from Midea Group's securities department stated they were暂时不清楚, and any future buyback actions would be announced as required. Staff from Sany Heavy Industry's board secretary office revealed that buybacks are a long-term effective行为, and the company would continue to promote them; as long as the plan period hasn't ended, there is still opportunity, but management would choose the appropriate timing based on market conditions. "From our department's perspective, we actively encourage management (to conduct buybacks) every year, submit proposals, and feedback investor suggestions. Management is already aware of the market's expectations for substantial buybacks by the company."
Unlike the从容 of the leading companies, a group of companies is facing a "sprint crisis" as their buyback windows near expiration. Researchers found that, as of the time of writing, approximately 11 companies had less than three months remaining until their buyback window expiry, yet their actual cumulative buyback amount was still less than half of the minimum intended amount, raising concerns about their ability to complete the plans.
Analysis reveals that the stock price exceeding the maximum buyback price上限 is the primary reason for the lagging buybacks. Among these 11 companies, 9 have experienced or are currently facing situations where their stock price surpassed the maximum buyback price. Notably, Conglin Technology and Sangfor Technologies have the shortest time remaining until their buyback windows expire, and their stock prices have长期高于 the intended maximum buyback price, leaving极小的可操作空间.
According to company announcements, Conglin Technology's current buyback plan is expected to expire on January 14, 2026, leaving only 3 trading days. However, the company has yet to execute any buybacks. The core reason is that since disclosing the buyback plan on June 28, 2025, the company's stock closing price has consistently remained above the intended maximum buyback price of 19.09 yuan per share, which is higher than the company's net asset value per share from the latest audited financial report after adjustments for rights and dividends, making it completely impossible to initiate buybacks.
The situation is similar for VPN leader Sangfor Technologies. The company announced a buyback plan on January 15, 2025, intending to repurchase 100-200 million yuan worth of shares, with a maximum intended price of 80 yuan per share. However, the company's stock price has持续超过 the intended maximum price since mid-February 2025. Consequently, after repurchasing 19.9387 million yuan worth of shares in January of that year, the buyback activity stalled. This buyback plan is expected to expire on January 15, 2026, leaving only 4 trading days, with the actual buyback amount representing only 19.94% of the minimum intended amount.
As early as the end of October last year, investors had pointed out the slow progress and asked why the company didn't raise the maximum buyback price. The company clearly stated at the time that there were no relevant plans. Currently, it appears difficult to complete the buyback plan on time. How will the company handle the buyback matter subsequently? Researchers, posing as investors, called Sangfor Technologies' board secretary office. Relevant staff indicated that the company has noted (the related issues) and will take subsequent actions, but specific arrangements are不便透露 for now.
Compared to companies unable to buy back due to stock price issues, companies like Shunfa Hengneng and Oriental Venture were slow to act even when conditions permitted buybacks. For instance, Shunfa Hengneng disclosed a 250-500 million yuan buyback plan for share cancellation as early as January 2025. Furthermore, its stock price had never exceeded the maximum buyback price of 4.95 yuan per share since the plan's announcement. However, the company only officially commenced the buyback on December 5, 2025.
As of the end of December 2025, Shunfa Hengneng's cumulative buyback amounted to only 13.5689 million yuan, a mere 5.43% of the minimum intended amount. Its buyback window is set to expire on February 12, 2026, leaving only about a month. To meet the target, it would need to repurchase at least 236 million yuan worth of shares within the next month. Could such a large-scale, concentrated buyback affect the company's normal operations? Why did the company delay initiating the buyback? With these questions, researchers repeatedly called the board secretary office number disclosed in Shunfa Hengneng's 2025 interim report but could not get through.
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