Melco to maintain deleveraging focus but buyback opportunity hard to ignore

Macau concessionaire Melco Resorts & Entertainment has reiterated its commitment to deleveraging but will take the opportunity presented by a weak share price to continue stock repurchasing. Detailing its short-term focus on the company’s 3Q26 earnings call overnight, Melco said it still plans to resume dividend payments by late 2027 but admitted it was difficult to ignore recent buyback opportunities, having repurchased US$160 million worth of shares – 33.1 million American Depositary Shares – in Q3 to bring total repurchases in 2026 to 47.1 million shares at a consideration of US$236 million.