SYDNEY, March 14, 2026, 10:56 AEDT
Telstra Group finished Friday at A$5.19, a 1.37% gain. The telecom continued its buyback, filings from March 12 and March 13 revealing another 3.49 million shares taken off the market, costing around A$18.0 million.
That’s notable: Telstra remains resilient even as the broader Australian market stumbles—pressured by oil jitters and interest rate fears. The S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.14% on Friday, bringing its March loss to 6.32%. Tensions in the Middle East have pushed inflation higher and stoked bets on tougher policy.
Shares finished ahead of local competitor TPG Telecom, which closed at A$3.91, gaining 0.51%. Telstra goes head-to-head with both TPG Telecom and Optus in Australia’s trio of major telecom operators.
Recent buyback disclosures weren’t big individually, but they kept the pace steady. On March 12, Telstra reported picking up 1.95 million shares for A$9.99 million. The next day’s filing logged another 1.54 million shares at A$8.01 million. Telstra’s on-market buyback is still slated to run through June 30, though the company can pull the plug or pause whenever it wants.
Telstra’s solid demand trails its February 19 half-year numbers, where the telecom giant bumped up its buyback cap to A$1.25 billion from A$1 billion, after posting a 9.4% jump in first-half profit to A$1.12 billion—topping analyst forecasts. The mobile business pulled in A$5.77 billion, ahead of consensus, while Telstra also upped its interim dividend to 10.5 Australian cents.
Chief Executive Vicki Brady said at the time, “The on-market share buyback is expected to support earnings and dividend per share growth.” Telstra, for its part, narrowed its full-year operating earnings forecast, now guiding for A$8.2 billion to A$8.4 billion, according to company documents. Telstra.com
After earnings landed, Zavier Wong at eToro dubbed Telstra “one of the most defensive names on the ASX,” referencing its reputation for resilience when markets turn rough. Telstra shares climbed to A$5.13 following the February update—the highest point since mid-November. Reuters
Even so, the risk is straightforward: persistent oil-fueled inflation worries could further entrench expectations of higher rates, dragging stocks lower. Telstra’s buyback and dividend angle might not be enough to prop up its shares if the broader selloff accelerates; the benchmark has already tumbled this month.
Still, Telstra wrapped up Friday ahead of both the ASX 200 and TPG Telecom. The buyback, scheduled to go through June 30 unless Telstra calls a halt, means investors can keep tracking just how much stock the company pulls off the market.
