It is interesting the proclivity of foreign firms to pay dividends versus stock buy backs. Whey don't American firms follow suit?
Buying back shares is immensely popular in the US and it benefits per share earnings by reducing the shares outstanding, clearly encouraging a bump in stock performance.
I would much more prefer to see better dividends in US companies versus buy backs. Why? Companies usually mechanically implement buy back programs which means they buy back shares whether or not the shares are over or under priced.
As an investor, I ALWAYS want to focus on buying the "bargains", not expensive shares. Shouldn't companies do the same? With a dividend in hand, investors would be in the position to make their own call on what is a deal or not. I much more prefer to make my own call!
