Open Access

Max Madeja

• This study aims to ascertain whether share-repurchasing companies in Germany observe long-term abnormal returns, a phenomenon that has been extensively discussed in literature over the past decades. Germany is an especially interesting market for this analysis, as share-repurchases were only legalized in 1998 and are subject to sterner regulations compared to markets where repurchasing has had a long tradition. The event sample consists of 169 announcements made between June 2008 and May 2013. Each event is observed for three years following the announcement. To calculate abnormal returns, this study employs the Return Across Time and Securities, Calendar-Time Portfolio, and Buy-and-Hold Abnormal Return approaches, which yield statistically significant abnormal returns after three years of 23.72%, 22.81%, and 57.77%, respectively. The results further indicate most of the price adjustment occurs in the 15 months following the announcement, with only minor corrections thereafter. Overall, the findings of this study suggest the existence of long-term abnormal returns for German repurchasing companies.