  This paper aims to explore the mechanical effect of a company's share
repurchase on earnings per share (EPS). In particular, while a share repurchase
scheme will reduce the overall number of shares, suggesting that the EPS may
increase, clearly the expenditure will reduce the net earnings of a company,
introducing a trade-off between these competing effects. We first of all review
accretive share repurchases, then characterise the increase in EPS as a
function of price paid by the company. Subsequently, we analyse and quantify
the estimated difference in earnings growth between a company's natural growth
in the absence of buyback scheme to that with its earnings altered as a result
of the buybacks. We conclude with an examination of the effect of share
repurchases in two cases studies in the US stock-market.
