Will Buy-Backs Revive China's Tech Giants' Slumping Valuations?

Companies such as Tencent and Alibaba are making efforts to enhance investor trust within the industry, where share values have lately fallen to concerning levels.

Major Chinese technology companies such as Tencent Holdings, Alibaba Group Holding, Meituan, and Xiaomi have initiated significant stock repurchase initiatives aimed at boosting investor trust despite ongoing doubts about the industry's prospects, with experts indicating that an improvement may be approaching shortly.

Struggling with stock values that have dropped sharply during recent market fluctuations, major technology companies are relying on large-scale stock buyback initiatives and prominent speeches from top executives to restore investor trust.

"Companies with strong net cash reserves and effective share repurchase programs are likely to increase their buying back speed," stated Citi Research analysts in a recent report.

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Tencent Holdings bought back almost HK$10 billion (US$1.27 billion) worth of its own stocks in June, which was the biggest monthly repurchase so far this year. At the same time, Alibaba Group Holding invested over US$50 million in stock buybacks just during the past week.

The leading food delivery platform Meituan revealed another repurchase worth almost HK$200 million on Monday and Tuesday. This followed the company's founder and CEO Wang Xing directly addressing the issue of its underperforming share price during its annual shareholders' meeting on Friday, admitting that the firm's recent stock movement has not met expectations.

Supporting his statements, Meituan’s Chief Financial Officer Chen Shaohui mentioned that the company intends to speed up its share repurchase initiatives in an effort to stabilize the stock price. Wang further noted that the company also seeks to enhance investor trust through additional actions, such as liquidating outside investments.

The mobile phone and electric car manufacturer Xiaomi has implemented comparable severe measures after several periods of falling stock prices. The firm based in Beijing has invested 1.2 billion Hong Kong dollars in repurchasing shares since mid-June.

Recent initiatives from major technology firms highlight an urgent desire to demonstrate their sustained strength to financial markets in New York and Hong Kong, as they attempt to cope with weak investor confidence influenced by a growing focus of worldwide capital on specialized artificial intelligence businesses such as Minimax and Zhipu AI.

Since early 2026, Xiaomi's share price listed in Hong Kong has fallen more than 40 percent. Shares of Alibaba and Meituan have each declined by over 30 percent, while Tencent’s value has decreased almost 30 percent.

"Traditional technology stocks have a lower share of artificial intelligence-related ventures, leading investors to shift their capital towards other areas within the AI sector," noted Kenny Ng, an analyst with Everbright Securities International.

In the meantime, Alibaba and Meituan have been locked in an extended conflict within the food delivery industry, with both firms investing hundreds of millions of yuan in their struggle to capture a bigger portion of the market.

The rivalry has diminished lately, following interventions by Chinese officials who introduced rules intended to prevent the abuse of financial support by online platforms. Alibaba holds the South China Morning Post.

Although experts indicate that these stock repurchase initiatives may merely act as a short-term solution, they think technology shares are expected to reach their lowest point shortly.

"we think that underlying factors will ultimately take over," stated citi research analysts. companies that have a solid main operation, stable and long-term profit margins, and robust cash creation are most prepared to handle the fluctuations of the ai development phase, they noted.

Ng from Everbright pointed out that following a continuous drop during the first half of the year, current valuations offer greater potential for increase rather than decrease.

Companies like Tencent and Alibaba have forward price-to-earnings ratios of approximately 10 times," Ng stated, noting that these valuations are not considered high. "There is relatively little potential for more significant drops.

At the same time, the company's creators have also been making prominent public appearances lately in an effort to strengthen investor trust.

During June, Alibaba’s founder Jack Ma along with senior leaders assembled in Hangzhou for a countryside rice-growing team-development activity, aiming to demonstrate cohesion inside the company as the technology corporation refines its artificial intelligence approaches.

After the farming trip, an Alibaba official shared an internal blog entry encouraging staff to adopt diligence and perseverance as the company undergoes changes.

In an effort to enhance the company's appeal, Lei Jun, founder and CEO of Xiaomi, was seen consuming local cuisine at a modest street stall in the center of Wuhan during mid-June while attending the World Youth Development Forum.

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The article was first published on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), a top-tier news outlet covering developments in China and Asia.

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