SoftBank shares untraded with glut of buy orders

TOKYO (Reuters) - SoftBank Group Corp shares were untraded with a glut of buy orders early on Thursday, a day after Chief Executive Masayoshi Son unveiled a $5.5 billion share buyback to prop up its share price, which he sees as undervalued.

SoftBank said on Wednesday it would purchase up to 600 billion yen ($5.46 billion) of stock in its largest ever buyback, funded by the proceeds of its domestic telco's December IPO.

It also announced a 60 percent jump in third-quarter operating profit, lifted by rising valuations of its growing technology investments.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was flat in early trading.

 

(Reporting by Sam Nussey; editing by Richard Pullin)