Infosys to kick off largest-ever share buyback of Rs 18,000 crore on Nov 20
The company aims to buy back 10 crore fully paid-up equity shares of face value of Rs 5 each, representing up to 2.41 per cent of the total paid-up equity share capital
New Delhi: IT services giant Infosys’ largest-ever share buyback programme worth Rs 18,000 crore is set to open for subscription on Thursday, and will close on November 26, according to a regulatory filing.
The company aims to buy back 10 crore fully paid-up equity shares of a face value of Rs 5 each, representing up to 2.41 per cent of the total paid-up equity share capital, at Rs 1,800 per share.
“The eligible shareholders can tender their equity shares during the tendering period, ie from November 20, 2025, to November 26, 2025. The buyback is being undertaken by the company after taking into account the strategic and operational cash needs of the company in the medium term and for returning surplus funds to the shareholders in an effective and efficient manner in line with its capital allocation policy,” Infosys said.
The buyback is divided into two categories: reserved (small shareholders) and the general category. The reservation for small shareholders will be 15 per cent of the number of equity shares that the company proposes to buy back, or their entitlement, whichever is higher.
A small shareholder is someone who holds equity shares having a market value of not more than Rs 2,00,000, as on the record date. There are 25,85,684 small shareholders of Infosys. The date for the purpose of determining the entitlement and the names of the eligible shareholders shall be November 14, 2025.
The ratio of buyback from the reserved category is set at 2:11, that is, 2 equity shares for every 11 equity shares held. For the general category, the ratio is 17:706.
Entitlement is the number of equity shares that an eligible shareholder is entitled to tender in the buyback, against the number of equity shares held by them on the record date.
The company had announced its first share Buyback programme in 2017. Infosys, at that time, had purchased 11.3 crore shares, or up to 4.92 per cent of the paid-up equity share capital of the company, for Rs 1,150 per equity share, amounting to around Rs 13,000 crore.
The second buyback was worth Rs 8,260 crore in 2019, the third was Rs 9,200 crore, and the last was Rs 9,300 crore in 2022-23.
Infosys promoters and promoter group, including Nandan M Nilekani and Sudha Murty, have decided not to participate in the buyback. The promoters collectively hold 13.05 per cent of the company’s equity as on the buyback announcement date.
Infosys intends to steadily increase its annual dividend per share (excluding any special dividends). The buyback is anticipated to enhance shareholder value over the long term by reducing the equity base.
“Effective from financial year 2025, the company expects to continue its policy of returning approximately 85 per cent of the free cash flow cumulatively over a 5-year period through a combination of semi-annual dividends and/or share buyback/special dividends, subject to applicable laws and requisite approvals, if any,” according to the company’s stated capital allocation policy.
