---
title: "Big Tech raised a net US$272bn in nine months; buybacks fell 83%"
summary: "How Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon and Meta paid for AI spending: borrowing, share sales and buybacks by quarter, Q1 2025 to Q3 2026, and the bond and share deals of August to October."
url: https://www.thetechbag.com/blog/big-tech-borrows-sells-shares-for-ai
format: Trend
desk: "Markets & the AI economy"
region: Global
published: 2026-11-01
facts_checked: 2026-11-01
author: TechBag (The TechBag Journal)
tags: ["capex","AI infrastructure","bonds","share sales","buybacks","Microsoft","Alphabet","Amazon","Meta","Oracle"]
cover: https://www.thetechbag.com/blog/covers/big-tech-borrows-sells-shares-for-ai.png
---

# Big Tech raised a net US$272bn in nine months; buybacks fell 83%

*How Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon and Meta paid for AI spending: borrowing, share sales and buybacks by quarter, Q1 2025 to Q3 2026, and the bond and share deals of August to October.*

Trend · Markets & the AI economy · By TechBag · Published 2026-11-01 · Facts checked 2026-11-01 · Canonical: https://www.thetechbag.com/blog/big-tech-borrows-sells-shares-for-ai

The short version

1. In the first nine months of the year Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon and Meta took in a net US$271.8bn from new debt and new shares, by our count from their filings. In the same months of last year, after buybacks and dividends, they paid out more than they raised.[16]
2. Their share buybacks fell 83%, from US$81.0bn to US$13.6bn, and all of what is left is Microsoft’s. Alphabet has bought back none this year, Meta none since September 2025, and Amazon none in the period.[16]
3. October added more: Meta sold US$37.5bn of shares and plans a US$60bn at-the-market programme, and Microsoft priced a US$25bn bond on 29 October, its first US investment-grade bond sale in more than nine years, Reuters reported.[6][5][1][4]

The four largest US cloud and platform companies now borrow and sell shares to pay for the data centres they are building. Their capital spending passed the cash their operations brought in for the first time in the quarter to 30 September, as our [capex trend](https://www.thetechbag.com/blog/big-tech-ai-capex-quarterly-line) showed. This piece follows the other side of the ledger: where the money to close that gap comes from, quarter by quarter, and the deals of August to October that will show up in the next set of filings.

## The line: from paying out to raising

Net cash from financing activities is the cash a company raised from lenders and shareholders minus what it paid back to them in repayments, dividends and buybacks. For Alphabet, Amazon and Meta together it was minus US$39.7bn in the first quarter of 2025. It turned positive in the last quarter of 2025 and was plus US$71.6bn in the quarter to 30 September 2026.[16] Microsoft stayed on the paying side in every quarter, at minus US$11bn to US$18bn.[16]

**Figure: Alphabet, Amazon and Meta went from paying out about US$25–40bn a quarter to raising US$71–87bn; Microsoft kept paying out**

*Net cash from financing activities per quarter, US$bn, calendar Q1 2025 to Q3 2026*

|  | Alphabet, Amazon, Meta | Microsoft |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Q1 25 | -39.7 | -13 |
| Q2 25 | -24.3 | -10.8 |
| Q3 25 | -28.5 | -11.8 |
| Q4 25 | 44.5 | -17.6 |
| Q1 26 | 71.3 | -11.4 |
| Q2 26 | 87.4 | -11.8 |
| Q3 26 | 71.6 | -16.6 |

Source: Company 10-Q and 10-K filings (SEC EDGAR XBRL data); TechBag sum of Alphabet, Amazon and Meta · as of 1 November 2026 · Above zero: raised more than paid out. Microsoft's fiscal quarters shown by calendar quarter

**Buybacks.** In the first nine months of 2025 the four spent US$81.0bn buying back their own shares: Alphabet US$39.8bn, Meta US$26.2bn, Microsoft US$15.0bn. In the same months of 2026 the figure was US$13.6bn, all of it Microsoft’s.[16][10][8]

**Debt.** Their long-term debt (the part not due within a year) went from US$206.4bn at the end of 2025 to US$410.2bn on 30 September: Amazon from US$65.6bn to US$173.1bn, Alphabet from US$46.5bn to US$125.1bn, Meta from US$58.7bn to US$80.9bn. Microsoft’s fell, from US$35.4bn to US$31.1bn, before the October bond.[16]

## How each one paid for the build

**Figure: Amazon borrowed almost as much as its operations brought in; Microsoft paid with operating cash alone**

*Sources of cash, first nine months of 2026, US$bn: operating cash flow, net new borrowing, new shares sold*

Amazon

113.8

113.4

227.2 US$bn

Alphabet

127.1

76.3

61.9

265.3 US$bn

Meta

96.9

121.8 US$bn

Microsoft

160.1

160.1 US$bn

|  | Operating cash | Net new borrowing | New shares sold |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Amazon | 113.8 | 113.4 | 0 |
| Alphabet | 127.1 | 76.3 | 61.9 |
| Meta | 96.9 | 24.9 | 0 |
| Microsoft | 160.1 | 0 | 0 |

Source: Company 10-Q filings (SEC EDGAR XBRL data); TechBag arithmetic · as of 1 November 2026 · Net borrowing = debt proceeds minus repayments. Microsoft repaid a net US$4.85bn, shown as zero. Meta's October share sale falls in Q4

**Amazon** spent US$175.7bn on property and equipment in the nine months and its free cash flow over twelve months was an outflow of US$42.4bn; its release says the rise in spending “primarily reflects investments in artificial intelligence”.[14] It borrowed a net US$49.5bn in the September quarter alone, including a US$25bn bond in eight tranches due 2029 to 2066, priced on 7 July, and £4.25bn of sterling notes priced on 9 September.[12][13][16]

**Alphabet** announced an US$80bn equity raise on 1 June, including a US$40bn at-the-market programme (shares sold into the market over time) and US$10bn from Berkshire Hathaway.[11] In the nine months it raised US$61.9bn from common and mandatory convertible preferred shares, US$12.4bn of it in the September quarter, and borrowed a net US$76.3bn.[10] That includes a US$25bn bond in ten tranches due 2028 to 2066, priced on 6 August.[9]

**Meta** borrowed US$24.9bn in the second quarter.[16] On 26 October it announced about US$35bn of underwritten share offerings and a planned US$60bn at-the-market programme, the “$95 billion” in the coverage.[5][17] The common-stock part was raised to US$25.0bn (40 million shares at US$625, sold through forward agreements that Meta settles by 19 November 2027), beside US$12.5bn of 6.50% mandatory convertible preferred; both settled on 29 October.[6][7] Nvidia, AMD and Broadcom indicated interest in up to US$5.0bn of the shares. Meta says it will fund its investment through “a balanced mix of operating cash flow, investment-grade debt, strategic partnerships, and equity capital”.[5] Its third-quarter capex was US$33.94bn and its free cash flow minus US$2.12bn.[8]

**Microsoft** priced US$25bn of notes in ten tranches due 2028 to 2066 on 29 October, settling on 4 November, for “general corporate purposes” that may include capital expenditures.[1][2] Reuters reported more than US$100bn of orders.[4] Amy Hood, its finance chief, said on 28 October that Microsoft expects to stay free-cash-flow positive this fiscal year and “will access additional sources of funding when we believe it is attractive to do so”. She guided spending of “over $50 billion” in the current quarter and about US$170bn for calendar 2026, down from about US$175bn.[3]

TechBag countMicrosoft's free cash flow, down 27%

Operating cash flow minus additions to property and equipment: US$58.0bn minus US$39.4bn = US$18.6bn in the quarter to 30 September, against US$45.1bn minus US$19.4bn = US$25.7bn a year earlier, a fall of 27.4%. Microsoft gives the US$18.6bn on its call.[3][16]

**Oracle**, whose quarters end a month earlier, completed a US$20bn at-the-market share sale in its quarter to 31 August. At its investor day on 28 October it committed to limit new capital raised through its fiscal 2030 to another US$20bn, “$10 billion in equity and $10 billion in gross debt”, excluding refinancing.[15]

**The price of the debt.** The 40-year tranches pay 6.350% for Microsoft (rated Aaa/AAA), 6.500% for Alphabet (Aa2/AA+) and 6.250% for Amazon (A1/AA).[1][9][12] Meta is rated Aa3/AA-.[5]

## What it means for a buyer, and what to watch

Analysts read the same filings two ways, and the coverage reports both. Ben Wood of CCS Insight said Meta’s sale “reflects the eye-watering levels of investment required to keep up in the AI arms race”; Meta’s shares were down 1.6% in morning trading after the announcement, CNBC reported.[17] The companies answer with their own numbers: Meta cites US$97bn of operating cash in nine months, and Hood said Microsoft is “confident” in “the return on every dollar of CapEx we’re spending”.[5][3]

Our viewOur view: what changes for a customer

Bonds due in 2056 and 2066 and shares that convert in 2029 are long commitments: the sellers of cloud and AI capacity are financing it as a business they expect to run for decades. For a buyer, the facts that follow are the ones in the [capex piece](https://www.thetechbag.com/blog/big-tech-ai-capex-quarterly-line): capacity is short by the sellers’ own account and components cost more. Price caps at renewal and capacity dates with a remedy matter more than the vendor’s balance sheet, which S&P still rates AA- or better for all four.

**What to watch.** Microsoft’s notes settle on 4 November.[1] Meta’s at-the-market programme is not expected to start until the first quarter of 2027, after its new Class C shares begin trading, and its forward sales settle by 19 November 2027.[5][6] The December-quarter filings, from late January, will show the October deals and whether any buybacks resume. The line in the first chart is the one to follow: if operating cash catches up with capex, it turns back toward zero.

How we did this

Figures as of 1 November 2026

Quarterly flows are from the cash-flow statements in each company’s 10-Q and 10-K, read through SEC EDGAR’s XBRL company facts; where a filing gives only a year-to-date total, the quarter is the difference of two totals. Net new borrowing = proceeds from long- and short-term debt minus repayments (Amazon’s finance-lease and financing-obligation payments excluded). New shares sold = proceeds from common and preferred stock offerings, excluding employee stock plans. Buybacks = “repurchases of common stock”. Long-term debt is the non-current balance-sheet figure. Microsoft’s fiscal quarters are shown as calendar quarters. Alphabet’s nine-month figures were checked against its 10-Q cash-flow statement, Amazon’s and Meta’s against their releases. Deal sizes, maturities, coupons and ratings are from the companies’ pricing term sheets, prospectus supplements and 8-Ks; the order book and the “first in more than nine years” are Reuters’. Filings dated after 1 November are not used.

Spotted an error? Write to us; corrections are published at the foot of the piece.

Sources

1. [Microsoft, pricing term sheet for ten series of notes (FWP)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/789019/000119312526439794/d799291dfwp.htm) — 29 October 2026 Filed 30 October.
2. [Microsoft, preliminary prospectus supplement (424B2), Use of Proceeds](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/789019/000119312526437008/d150456d424b2.htm) — 29 October 2026
3. [Microsoft, FY27 first-quarter earnings call transcript](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/investor/events/fy-2027/earnings-fy-2027-q1) — 28 October 2026
4. [Reuters (via The Star), Deborah Sophia: Microsoft expects to raise $25 billion in US bond sale, sources say](https://www.thestar.com.my/tech/tech-news/2026/10/30/microsoft-expects-to-raise-25-billion-in-us-bond-sale-source-says) — 29 October 2026 Cites Bloomberg News for the tranche count.
5. [Meta Platforms, launch release for the depositary share and common stock offerings (FWP)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1326801/000119312526431036/d116268dfwp.htm) — 26 October 2026
6. [Meta Platforms, pricing term sheet (FWP)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1326801/000119312526432549/d382225dfwp.htm) — 26 October 2026 Filed 27 October.
7. [Meta Platforms, Form 8-K (closing of the offerings)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1326801/000119312526438017/d183592d8k.htm) — 29 October 2026
8. [Meta Platforms, Q3 2026 results (8-K, Exhibit 99.1)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1326801/000162828026066700/meta-09302026xexhibit991.htm) — 21 October 2026
9. [Alphabet, pricing term sheet for ten series of notes (FWP)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1652044/000119312526338750/d159970dfwp.htm) — 6 August 2026
10. [Alphabet, Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 September 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1652044/000165204426000084/goog-20260930.htm) — 29 October 2026
11. [Alphabet, Alphabet announces proposed $80 billion equity capital raise (8-K, Exhibit 99.1)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1652044/000119312526257724/d83560dex991.htm) — 1 June 2026
12. [Amazon, final term sheet for eight series of notes (FWP)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1018724/000110465926081334/tm2619352d3_fwp.htm) — 7 July 2026
13. [Amazon, final term sheet for sterling notes (FWP)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1018724/000110465926106322/tm2624614d4_fwp.htm) — 9 September 2026
14. [Amazon, Q3 2026 results (8-K, Exhibit 99.1)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1018724/000101872426000038/amzn-20260930xex991.htm) — 29 October 2026
15. [Oracle, Investor Day 2026 release (8-K, Exhibit 99.1)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1341439/000119312526435853/d75538dex991.htm) — 28 October 2026
16. [SEC EDGAR, XBRL company facts from the 10-Q and 10-K filings of Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon and Meta](https://data.sec.gov/api/xbrl/companyfacts/CIK0001018724.json) — filings dated 30 April 2025 to 30 October 2026 CIKs 789019, 1652044, 1018724 and 1326801; quarterly values and sums are TechBag's arithmetic.
17. [CNBC, Kai Nicol-Schwarz and April Roach: Meta announces $95 billion stock offering to fund AI expansion](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/10/26/meta-stock-offering-ai.html) — 26 October 2026

Related on TechBag: [the capex line these deals pay for](https://www.thetechbag.com/blog/big-tech-ai-capex-quarterly-line), [Microsoft Azure](https://www.thetechbag.com/microsoft/microsoft-azure), the [AWS hub](https://www.thetechbag.com/aws) and [OpenAI’s smaller-than-planned round](https://www.thetechbag.com/blog/openai-round-11bn-of-30bn-target).

**Disclosure.** TechBag is a software reseller: it earns a margin when a reader buys through it, including from vendors named here. The analysis is TechBag’s own; no vendor paid for or saw this piece before publication. Facts are labelled reported, TechBag count or our view.

Go deeper on TechBag

- [Big Tech's quarterly capex hit US$202bn](https://www.thetechbag.com/blog/big-tech-ai-capex-quarterly-line) — the spending these bonds and share sales pay for
- [Microsoft Azure](https://www.thetechbag.com/microsoft/microsoft-azure) — the cloud behind Microsoft's first US bond sale in more than nine years
- [The AWS hub](https://www.thetechbag.com/aws) — every AWS product TechBag covers, with dated claims