On Wednesday, Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) and Comcast Corp (NASDAQ:CMCSA), ahead of a new tax on stock repurchases next year, became the latest US firms to disclose share buybacks worth billions of dollars.

Comcast doubled its share buyback authorisation to USD 20 billion after increasing it to USD 10 billion in January. Shares of Comcast were up 1 per cent before the bell. The company said it had bought back about USD 9 billion worth of stock this year. On the other hand, Johnson and Johnson announced a stock repurchase of up to USD 5 billion.

Notably, the US’s climate, healthcare, and tax bills have made companies quicken share buybacks, as the bills impose a new excise tax on stock buybacks and a minimum 15 per cent tax on corporations, to be effective from next year.

Founded by Ralph J. Roberts in 1963, Comcast is the largest American multinational telecommunications conglomerate. Headquartered in Philadelphia, it is a producer of feature films for theatrical exhibition, and over-the-air and cable television programming.