EssilorLuxottica’s €918M Buyback Fails to Halt Slide as Founder Family Rift Deepens

The numbers tell a stark story of disconnect. EssilorLuxottica’s first-half revenue climbed 9.7 percent at constant currencies to €14.818 billion, its adjusted operating margin expanded to 18.9 percent, and cash generation hit a five-year high above €1.07 billion. Yet the stock has shed 44 percent since January, including a 13 percent drop over the past month alone.

That gap between operational strength and market sentiment sits at the heart of the eyewear giant’s current predicament — one that a fresh share repurchase program, unveiled in late August, has so far failed to bridge.

A Family Exit and Its Fallout

The turbulence traces back to August 25, when Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio resigned his operational roles, stepping down as president of Ray-Ban and chief strategy officer. His departure letter took direct aim at management style, describing the company’s leadership as distant and impersonal. Tensions with CEO Francesco Milleri had been simmering since June, when Del Vecchio failed in an attempt to acquire siblings’ stakes in the family holding vehicle.

The rift carries particular weight given the group’s ownership architecture. Del Vecchio retains a 12.5 percent stake through the Delfin holding company and has pledged to keep advocating for independence and a stable ownership structure. The company’s articles of association cap any single shareholder’s voting rights at 31 percent — a safeguard that now looks increasingly consequential as family dynamics shift.

Buyback Mechanics Versus Market Reality

On August 28, EssilorLuxottica responded by mandating a service provider to repurchase up to five million of its own shares, a program Reuters valued at as much as $918 million. The company framed the move as an expression of confidence in its value creation and long-term prospects. Paris-listed shares initially jumped as much as 3.8 percent on the news.

The early execution data, however, underscores the program’s limits. Through August, the company acquired 137,964 shares at a weighted average daily price of roughly €159.87 across multiple trading venues. By Friday’s close, the stock had fallen to €151.20, down 2.2 percent on the day — leaving the buyback’s average purchase price underwater and the downward trajectory intact.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying EssilorLuxottica?

Technical indicators suggest the selling may be overdone. The relative strength index sits at 30.4, a level that typically signals oversold conditions, and the share price now hovers just 1.5 percent above its 52-week low of €148.90. The distance from the 52-week high of €323.70 — roughly 53 percent — illustrates the scale of the confidence erosion.

Structural Stability Amid Strategic Questions

A mandatory disclosure filed September 3 confirmed the capital structure as of July 31 remains unchanged: 464,247,548 shares outstanding, with 459,591,833 voting rights attached to shares excluding treasury stock. The 31 percent voting cap persists, providing formal continuity even as personnel shifts roil the leadership layer.

Investor unease appears less about the fundamentals than about whether management can regain control of messaging and strategy following a prominent family member’s exit. The buyback alone, many market participants suggest, is unlikely to resolve that credibility question — visible stability at the top will be required.

Side Bets and Forward Catalysts

Complicating the picture are reports from September 4 suggesting EssilorLuxottica may be exploring a smaller stake in Armani, potentially in partnership with other bidders in the ongoing auction for the fashion house. No confirmed decision has been announced, and the coverage frames the matter as market context within a broader bidding process.

Meanwhile, the company’s strategic pipeline continues to build. EssilorLuxottica has signed on as an official supporter of the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics and Paralympics, with the EA7 brand slated to showcase the intersection of sports technology and Italian craftsmanship. In its smart eyewear partnership with Meta, sales have tripled to over seven million units in 2025, and industry forecasts project the overall smart glasses market to reach 13.4 million units in 2026.

For shareholders, the immediate picture remains a convergence of unresolved questions: the leadership vacuum left by Del Vecchio’s exit, a share price trading near its yearly low, and a repurchase program whose efficacy has yet to be demonstrated. The voting structure disclosure at least confirms that control arrangements remain formally intact — though whether that institutional stability can translate into market confidence is another matter entirely.