Here is a headline you have definitely seen.
A big company announces it will spend billions buying its own stock.
And depending on which article you read next, that is either a responsible return of money to shareholders, or a scandalous waste that should have gone to workers and factories.
Both versions get written about the exact same transaction.
Gif by natgeochannel on Giphy
So let us do something unusual and explain what is actually happening, in plain terms, with the honest arguments on both sides.
Because if you own any stocks, including inside a retirement account or a fund you have never examined, this is happening with your money.
Here we go.