By Noel Randewich

(Reuters) – U.S. stock purchasebacks seem to have broken new records in the quarter-end earnings season. Investors worry about inflation and stagnant shares prices, while some others are concerned about the potential for a recession.

According to Informa Financial Intelligence, a financial data company EPFR and Informa Financial Intelligence, new repurchase announcements from U.S. businesses reached more than $300 billion for the first quarter. March showed a strong increase year-over-year, which suggests that buybacks are resilient.

Stock buybacks have been a significant contributor to Wall Street’s growth over the last few years. The results will make them the focus of the media. When companies feel optimistic about the future, they tend to buy back shares.

Investors worry about the impact of inflation on company outlooks. This could lead to companies being less willing to pay shareholders back in dividends or buybacks.

Jamie Dimon, Chief Executive Officer of JPMorgan (NYSE) stated Monday that his bank will reduce stock buybacks in the coming year to comply with federal capital requirements.

You can also find it Monday Starbucks Corp (NASDAQ:) The company announced that it will suspend billions in stock buybacks and invest more money in its employees, stores and workers at a moment when coffee sellers face increasing unionization.

I don’t believe these are one-offs. Art Hogan, Chief Market Strategist at National Securities New York, predicted that more companies will slow down the buyback process.

Graphic: buybacks hit record highs- https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-STOCKS/BUYBACKS/akvezjyawpr/chart.png

S&P 500 companies plowed around $880 billion into buying their own shares last year, up from $520 billion in 2020, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:) in a report last month estimated S&P 500 companies in 2022 will spend $1 trillion buying up their own shares.

Winston Chua of EPFR Informa Financial Intelligence, an analyst, stated that, at the moment, companies seem to aggressively repurchase their shares. Chua reported that new buybacks in March totaled $74 billion as compared to $54 trillion in March 2021.

Grace Peters from JPMorgan Private Bank London EMEA, head of investment strategy, said that strong balance sheets would give major firms the confidence to maintain their high pace of buybacks.

Analysts on average expect S&P 500 companies’ earnings to have grown 6.4% in the March quarter, according to I/B/E/S data from Refinitiv, compared to over 30% growth in the prior quarter.

The benchmark stock index is still down nearly 6% from the record-setting close of January 1, partly due to a 13% loss.

Peters stated that earnings look strong, but there’s a lot of volatility. Peters noted that such a situation is something all company boards should be aware of.