LONDON, June 29, 2026, 12:05 BST
- NatWest traded at 655.00/655.20p, off 0.18%. The FTSE 100 was also down 0.18%.
- The bank’s most recent verified June buybacks averaged around 590.9p. Monday’s mid-price was 10.9% higher than the price at which those shares were repurchased.
- NatWest comes in with a lower P/E and higher yield compared to other UK banks, though the shares are at roughly 1.64x Q1 tangible book.
NatWest Group Plc (LON:NWG) edged lower with the FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE:UKX) on Monday, but the buyback activity gave a clearer signal for investors than the modest share drop. AJ Bell’s delayed prints had NatWest at 655.00/655.20p, off 0.18%, with the last trades logged at 11:46 BST. The FTSE 100 sat at 10,488.71, also off 0.18%.
The bank’s most recent buyback filing confirmed it bought 3.55 million shares between June 8 and June 11 on the LSE, CHIX and BATE. Based on venue-level trades from the SEC filing, the weighted average worked out to 590.9p per share. With the mid-price at 655.1p on Monday, those shares now stand 10.9% above the bank’s buyback price before any fees.
| Latest verified buyback tranche | Figure |
|---|---|
| Shares bought from June 8 to 11 | 3,551,991 |
| Average price paid | 590.9p |
| Total cash before fees | £21.0 million |
| Monday mid-price value | £23.3 million |
| Difference to paid average | +10.9%, or about £2.3 million |
A £21.0 million gain isn’t big for a £52.17 billion company. But the math matters for capital returns. If the share price goes up, future buybacks reduce the share count less for the same cash. NatWest said in the filing it will cancel the bought-back shares.
NatWest continues to look strong versus other large London banks, according to AJ Bell data:
| Stock/index | Delayed quote/value | Day move | P/E | Dividend yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NatWest Group Plc (LON:NWG) | 655.00/655.20p | off 0.18% | 9.50 | 4.90% |
| Barclays PLC (LON:BARC) | 507.70/507.90p | down 0.57% | 11.89 | 1.67% |
| Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LON:LLOY) | 109.30/109.35p | up 0.14% | 14.37 | 3.34% |
| HSBC Holdings PLC (LON:HSBA) | 1,426.60/1,427.00p | gained 0.30% | 15.84 | 3.83% |
| FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE:UKX) | 10,488.71 | dropped 0.18% | — | — |
NatWest shows the lowest P/E and biggest yield among its peers on the screen. That buyback level is important, because the stock can stay cheap on earnings but not on book value. For Q1, NatWest said its tangible net asset value per share was 400p. Monday’s mid-price puts the shares trading at about 1.64 times tangible book.
NatWest posted a Q1 attributable profit of £1.4 billion, with EPS at 17.9p and return on tangible equity coming in at 18.2%. CET1 ratio landed at 14.3%. Management said it now sees 2026 income, not counting notable items, toward the upper end of its £17.2 billion-£17.6 billion guidance, not factoring in Evelyn Partners. CEO Paul Thwaite said the year kicked off with “positive momentum.” NatWest Group Investors
The main risk is in the credit line and UK economy. In May, Reuters said NatWest booked a £283 million impairment in Q1, with £140 million tied to a gloomier outlook after the Middle East conflict. Back then, Thwaite said “market conditions are uncertain.” Reuters
Capital is finding its way into acquisitions, too. NatWest in February reached a deal to buy Evelyn Partners for £2.7 billion including debt. Reuters reported the deal could more than double assets under management and administration to £127 billion, with £100 million a year in expected cost cuts. RBC Capital Markets analyst Benjamin Toms said NatWest’s move “somewhat surprised” him, saying it wasn’t what he expected “given how tightly the CEO holds the bank’s purse strings.” Reuters
The makeup now comes under fresh ownership. The UK government exited its NatWest position in May 2025, ending state control that started with the 2008 bailout. With no more government sales, holders have a cleaner line on both share count and buyback pricing compared to when the Treasury was involved.
The next thing for investors is a math check: can NatWest keep returns close to the 18.2% it posted in Q1 and still buy shares at a price that makes sense? At 655.1p, £100 million gets about 15.3 million shares. That’s down from 16.9 million shares at the last confirmed buyback average of 590.9p.
