London, June 10, 2026, 16:02 BST
- Tesco shares rose almost 2% in London trading, with delayed Reuters/LSEG data showing the stock at 464.8p, up 8.9p.
- The move came as Tesco continued its £750 million buyback, saying it had bought another 2.0 million shares for cancellation.
- The next test is close: Tesco has said it will publish its Q1 trading statement on June 18.
Tesco PLC shares climbed on Wednesday, giving investors a fresh reason to look again at the UK’s largest grocer before next week’s trading update. A delayed Reuters/LSEG quote showed the stock at 464.8p, up 8.9p, or 1.95%, while Hargreaves Lansdown data showed a previous close of 455.9p and market value of about £29.26 billion.
What changed today was not a new profit forecast. The fresh company filing was another buyback notice. Still, the share move matters because Tesco is heading into its June 18 Q1 trading statement with the market focused on whether recent market-share gains can keep supporting profit, not just sales.
Tesco said it bought 2,007,363 ordinary shares on June 9 at an average price of 455.47p. The shares will be cancelled, which means they are removed from circulation. A buyback can support earnings per share, or EPS — profit divided by the number of shares — if earnings hold steady.
Since the latest buyback programme began in April, Tesco has purchased 62.8 million shares for cancellation at an aggregate cost of £285.9 million, according to Wednesday’s regulatory filing. The programme is part of a £750 million commitment, so the pace and price of buybacks remain part of the investment case.
The backdrop is stronger than it looked earlier in the year. In April, Tesco reported sales excluding VAT and fuel of £66.59 billion for 2025/26, adjusted operating profit of £3.15 billion and free cash flow of £1.96 billion. Adjusted operating profit strips out certain items to show the underlying performance of the business.
Tesco also said adjusted diluted EPS rose 6.0% to 29.0p, helped by profit growth and the ongoing buyback programme. That is why today’s buyback notice is not just administrative: it feeds directly into one of the measures investors use to judge shareholder returns.
Market-share data has been the other support. Worldpanel by Numerator said Tesco’s sales rose 3.2% in the 12 weeks to May 17, with share rising to 28.2% from 27.9% a year earlier. Sainsbury’s also gained share, while Asda remained at 11.5%, ahead of Aldi and Morrisons.
The same Worldpanel update showed grocery inflation easing to 3.1% in the four weeks to May 17, the slowest rate since December 2024. That helps the consumer story, but it does not remove the pressure on supermarkets: 30.3% of grocery sales involved a promotion, up from 28.4% a year earlier.
Tesco has leaned into that value fight. In April, Chief Executive Ken Murphy said the company was “committed to doing whatever we can to help keep down the cost of the weekly shop,” and Tesco said it had expanded Everyday Low Prices to 3,000 products alongside Aldi Price Match and Clubcard Prices.
The risk is that market share proves expensive. Tesco’s own results flagged cost inflation from higher UK National Insurance contributions and the Extended Producer Responsibility levy, while management said much would depend on the duration of the Middle East conflict and its effect on UK households and the economy. If Asda, Lidl or Aldi press harder on price, Tesco may have to keep investing in value even if sales volumes improve.
Asda remains the most direct swing factor among traditional rivals. Reuters reported that Asda’s first-quarter like-for-like sales fell 0.8%, an improvement from a 4.2% fall in the previous quarter, after better availability and some price cuts. Like-for-like sales compare stores open in both periods, excluding the effect of new space.
For Tesco, the June 18 update now carries the weight of today’s move. Investors will be watching UK like-for-like sales, market share and any change to the 2026/27 adjusted operating profit guidance of £3.0 billion to £3.3 billion — a range that sits close to last year’s £3.15 billion result and leaves little room for a price war to worsen.
