London, Feb 26, 2026, 08:55 (GMT) — Regular session
- NatWest shares edged up at the open in London, with the lender continuing its string of buyback announcements.
- UK bank shares tracked moves across the wider market, holding their edge after the FTSE 100’s robust session.
- Next up: a UK fiscal update lands next week, with NatWest’s dividend calendar also on the docket.
NatWest Group (NWG.L) ticked up at the open in London on Thursday, with shares changing hands at 616.2 pence by 0840 GMT—just a touch above where they started the session, at 616.8 pence. The price so far has swung between 611.8 and 619.2 pence.
The lender’s buyback has become a near-daily fixture in the market, drip-feeding disclosures that give traders something to latch onto when sentiment sours. A share buyback simply means the company is snapping up its own stock—reducing the number of shares on the market, which can prop up earnings per share.
Shares of NatWest climbed 1.82% to £6.15 by Wednesday’s close, outpacing the FTSE 100, which finished the session at a fresh record. HSBC was the standout, soaring 7.9% after boosting its profitability target. The FTSE 100 gained 1.18% on the day.
NatWest disclosed in a Feb. 25 filing that it repurchased 467,642 ordinary shares from UBS AG, London Branch, with prices ranging from 607.8 pence up to 614.4 pence. Shares were bought across the London Stock Exchange, CHIX, and BATE. The repurchased stock will be cancelled. Post-settlement, the bank expects to hold 217,878,410 shares in treasury and have 7,976,936,122 shares in issue, not counting those held in treasury. The volume-weighted average price on the LSE came in at 611.41 pence, according to the filing.
NatWest rolled out its latest £750 million buyback on the same day it unveiled a £2.7 billion purchase of wealth manager Evelyn Partners—the bank’s largest move since it was bailed out back in 2008. “Although we consider this to be a bolt on transaction, it would be transformational, filling the gap NWG has in its affluent wealth offering,” wrote RBC Capital Markets analyst Benjamin Toms. Reuters
NatWest on Feb. 13 posted a 24% rise in 2025 pretax profit, coming in at £7.7 billion, and bumped its return on tangible equity target for 2028 to above 18%. Chief Executive Paul Thwaite called it a move to “raise our ambition and sharpen our strategic focus, with stretching new targets in place”. Reuters
Even with those buybacks in play, the stock remains exposed if the cycle shifts. Should the UK economy soften, rates fall more quickly, or new concerns over bad loans emerge, bank shares could slide—repurchases won’t be enough to hold the line against that kind of pressure.
Eyes turn to Tuesday, March 3, with finance minister Rachel Reeves set to present a budget update, while the Office for Budget Responsibility rolls out fresh projections on growth and borrowing. Reeves has signaled she wants to keep the event muted; nevertheless, even a small adjustment in those numbers tends to shift sentiment for domestically focused lenders.
NatWest shareholders have a few dates to keep in mind: the bank’s proposed final dividend of 23.0 pence for 2025 is slated to go ex-dividend on March 19, meaning anyone buying after that won’t qualify for the payout. Payment’s set for May 5, pending the green light from the April 28 AGM. First-quarter results come out May 1.
