TikTok’s parent company ByteDance’s valuation has jumped to approximately $315 billion in the latest share buyback announced by the company. The news was first reported by Reuters, citing people familiar with the matter. ByteDance is offering to buy back stock of its U.S. employees at $189.90 per share, reflecting an 11% premium compared to its buyback conducted a year ago at $171 apiece. It also marks a nearly 5% increase from the buyback conducted six months ago at $181 per share. Notably, ByteDance was valued at $268 billion in 2023 and $300 billion in 2024.
ByteDance undertakes regular share repurchases from its employees, displaying its robust balance sheet and financial position. The latest share buyback will be conducted this week. Some of ByteDance’s major investors include Japan’s Softbank (SFTBY), Fidelity Investments, and T. Rowe Price Group.
ByteDance’s Value Rises Despite Looming Ban
Despite the looming threat of a potential U.S. ban, ByteDance is undertaking the buyback at a premium, which indicates its massive strength in the video-sharing market. The buyback could also be aimed at boosting employee morale in its U.S. operations. ByteDance has until April 5 to decide on a course of action to either sell TikTok’s U.S. operations or stop its services in the country.
The latest valuation makes ByteDance one of the most valued private companies in the world. ByteDance is a Chinese tech behemoth, owning several apps and services. Some of its popular apps include the short-form video-sharing app TikTok, which also has a Chinese counterpart called Douyin. Plus, it hosts a video-editing app CapCut, and a social media app Lemon8, among others. Interestingly, ByteDance also has its own closed-source, multimodal AI chatbot called Doubao, which boasts around 75 million monthly active users.
Investors’ confidence in the Chinese tech sector has rebounded after DeepSeek launched a lower costing competitive AI model in January. DeepSeek’s launch set the AI world on fire, pushing companies to reconsider their AI investments and future roadmap.
What Are the Best Chinese Stocks to Buy?
We used the TipRanks Stock Comparison Tool for Best Chinese Stocks to understand which stock is most favored by analysts. Investors can consider investing in one of these stocks after thorough research. Currently, Li Auto (LI), Trip.com (TCOM), NetEase (NTES), JD.com (JD), and Alibaba (BABA) score Wall Street’s Strong Buy consensus rating, with BABA stock offering a higher upside potential compared to the rest.
