LONDON, March 30, 2026, 13:16 BST. 1
Rolls-Royce Holdings said on Monday it bought back about 2.25 million shares for cancellation in the latest step of its £2.3 billion 2026 programme, pressing on with cash returns even as higher oil prices raise fresh questions over airline demand. The company said the purchases were made on March 27 across four venues, including the London Stock Exchange. 2
The filing matters because buybacks — when a company buys back and usually cancels its own stock — now sit at the heart of Rolls-Royce’s shareholder returns plan. At its Feb. 26 full-year results, the engine maker set out a £7 billion-£9 billion buyback for 2026-2028, including £2.5 billion this year, after profit rose 40% and guidance was lifted. 3
Monday’s filing lifted total repurchases under the current programme to 26.1 million shares at an average 1,226.91 pence apiece, Rolls-Royce said. The latest tranche was bought at average prices a little above 1,118 pence, with a top price of 1,158 pence, leaving 8.40 billion shares in issue and none in treasury. 2
Chief executive Tufan Erginbilgic said in February that Rolls-Royce had a “strong balance sheet” and saw “significant growth for years to come” when it launched the multi-year buyback. The company also guided for 2026 underlying operating profit of £4.0 billion-£4.2 billion and free cash flow of £3.6 billion-£3.8 billion. 3
Interactive Investor analyst Richard Hunter said after those results that the group had “unfulfilled ambitions to maintain the momentum.” Reuters reported at the time that Rolls-Royce’s upgraded mid-term margin target would bring it into line with GE Aerospace, its main rival in twin-aisle, or widebody, jet engines. 4
The turnaround has been driven by civil aerospace and power systems. Rolls-Royce said 2025 free cash flow was helped by growth in long-term service agreements, supported by an 8% rise in large-engine flying hours, while data-centre demand and government spending lifted power-systems margins. 3
But March has turned harder for aviation-linked stocks. At Friday’s close, Rolls-Royce shares were 21.94% below the 52-week high they hit on Feb. 26, MarketWatch data showed, and Reuters reported on Monday that Europe’s oil-sensitive travel sector fell 0.9% as Brent crude climbed above $115 a barrel. 5
Reuters also reported that airlines are raising fares and trimming capacity as jet fuel prices surge. Barclays analyst Andrew Lobbenberg said, “The only way to get prices up is to reduce capacity,” a shift that would likely matter for Rolls-Royce if it slows the flying hours that support those service contracts. 6
Rolls-Royce still expects 2026 large-engine flying hours to reach 115%-120% of 2019 levels, and defence work plus data-centre power sales offer some cushion if airline demand softens. Monday’s filing was routine, but it showed management is still moving ahead with the buyback while the market tests how durable the aviation recovery is. 3
