> A pitfall to share buybacks is that many executive compensation packages are tied to stock price performance which can be juiced by billions in share buybacks

> A pitfall to share buybacks is that many executive compensation packages are tied to stock price performance which can be juiced by billions in share buybacks. You're assuming that shareholders don't want this, too. There's a reason executive pay is tied to stock price performance - that's all investors care about - because all they want is capital gains.