LONDON, March 25, 2026, 11:04 GMT
- Rolls-Royce climbed roughly 2.1% to 1,190.5 pence in London, while the FTSE 100 advanced 1.1%.
- On March 24, the company picked up another 1.01 million shares for cancellation, bumping total buybacks during this programme up to 21.46 million shares.
- Rolls-Royce said it’s putting £19.3 million into its turbine-blade facility in Rotherham, with plans to double production by 2030.
Shares of Rolls-Royce Holdings climbed roughly 2% on Wednesday after the engine maker reported another round of buybacks, while optimism over possible de-escalation in the Middle East lifted the broader UK market. The stock changed hands near 1,190.5 pence in London, gaining about 2.1% from its previous close.
This one catches attention largely because Rolls-Royce has been a talking point since late February, when it posted a 40% surge in annual profit, ramped up its outlook, and announced plans for up to £2.5 billion in buybacks for 2026—buybacks meaning the company’s snapping up its own shares. Stock’s still lagging, though: even after Wednesday’s rally, shares sat roughly 16% under their 1,420-pence peak.
Rolls-Royce snapped up 1,007,064 shares for cancellation on March 24, according to a Wednesday filing, as part of its ongoing £2.3 billion buyback. That brings the total under the programme to 21.46 million shares repurchased, at an average price of 1,246.3 pence each.
The company announced plans just a day earlier to put £19.3 million into its Advanced Blade Casting Facility in Rotherham, following a £2 million grant from South Yorkshire’s mayoral authority. The investment, according to the group, brings in new machines that are expected to double blade output by 2030. The site produces turbine blades for engines powering Airbus A350-900 and Boeing 787 jets.
Nigel Bird, executive vice president for turbine systems at Rolls-Royce, called the move “a vote of confidence” in the company’s workforce. The investment hands the market a tangible reminder that Rolls-Royce remains committed to civil-aerospace expansion, even as it continues to return cash to shareholders. Rolls-Royce
Stocks were on the move. The FTSE 100 rose 1.1% at 1028 GMT, with banks and miners out in front, while Shell traded lower as crude prices pulled back—reports said Washington was pitching a 15-point proposal to end the Iran war. Defense players BAE Systems and Leonardo saw bumps too, up 0.9% and 0.3%, respectively, Investing.com showed.
Kerry Craig, global market strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, put it this way: “The market is trading the headlines.” Over at Swissquote Bank, senior analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya pointed to investors “running on optimism” out of the U.S. Reuters
Support from the sell side hasn’t wavered. On Mar. 24, Goldman Sachs stuck with its buy call and its 1,400-pence price target. Data from Investing.com, tracking 13 analysts, pointed to an average 12-month target at roughly 1,395.9 pence.
Still, the rebound’s on shaky ground. If ceasefire talks collapse and oil climbs, airlines get hit by higher costs, inflation nerves flare up, and markets might brace for tighter rates. BlackRock’s Larry Fink flagged $150 oil as a possible trigger for a global recession. Marc Velan at Lucerne Asset Management pointed out that investors aren’t eager to chase moves that could just snap back.
