RE:The flip sideOk I'll bite. If a company is "losing" money, they won't have enough to pay a divy. They may cut the divy. Do you know what happens to the sp when a company has to cut the divy because of financial constraints? Less shares gives a company a higher eps. The value of the company is the same regardless of the amount of shares BUT the value per share increases. You got the same explanation from 3 different posters. Anyhow regardless of what I think, you think, or any other posters think, the company will do what they want. It's up to you to decide if the direction matches your thesis. If you don't want to invest in a company that is buying back shares and would prefer a company that offers a higher divy, thn you can definitely find some companies doing just that.