If you look at an individual company you are probably right. If you look at the entire economy there is an issue. (micro v. macro economics) So from a macro point of view, why is it a problem? After the Great Recession, the Federal Reserve lowered interest rate target level to 0%-0.25%. This was used to stimulate the economy. Around 2011, most companies were profitable but needed/wanted to make upgrades to their stores. They took out loans to do just that. Around 2016 the Federal Reserve started to raise interest rates. A side effect of this action is that interest rates on the corporate debt goes up. This means there are a lot of companies with debt they cannot handle in a recession. A recession is likely by the year 2020. I would prefer that the companies not buyback stock but hold onto it for the next recession. Sources: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/11/21/theres-a-9-trillion-corporate-debt-bomb-bubbling-in-the-us-economy.html https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/12/the-biggest-red-flag-for-the-next-recession-corporate-debt-to-cash-ratios-top-economist-says.html https://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-corporate-debt-risks-20190120-story.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_funds_rate#/media/File:Quarterly_gross_domestic_product_and_federal_funds_rate.png