Buying back shares when your stock price is already overvalued is daft because it rewards shareholders who sell at the expense of those who don't.Regardless, plenty of U.S and U.K. companies have done exactly that lately. But it might be a little unfair to lump Berkeley Group, the London-focused home-builder, in with that group. Its stock has fallen about 20 percent since Britain's vote to quit the EU, and its bosses think that no longer reflects its true potential.Despite almost daily headlines about London's housing market hitting the skids, they have a point.Instead of just paying a cash dividend, Berkeley said on Friday that it would also consider buying back stock "to the extent the board believes the prevailing share price materially undervalues the company." Total shareholder returns will remain the same.Though some investors would doubtless prefer to take the cash in an uncertain environment, buying back stock doesn't seem so foolish.Berkeley trades on a pretty miserable 7 times estimated earnings, a discount to the less London-centric Persimmon. So it's hard to argue that the company's horrendously overvalued. Only long-suffering carmakers, airlines and banks fetch similar.
London Penalty
Berkeley Group's shares have suffered more than Persimmon, which doesn't build in the capital