03:23 PM EDT, 05/21/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Suncor Energy Inc. ( SU ) shares rose to an almost 16-year high after the oil-sands producer accelerated plans to ramp up share buybacks, marking a win for activist investor Elliott Investment Management LP, Bloomberg News is reporting Tuesday.

The report noted Canada's second-largest oil producer by market value said it boosted spending on share repurchases to 75% of its free funds flow this quarter. Buybacks will ramp up to essentially all of its free funds when it cuts net debt to C$8 billion ($5.9 billion), discarding its previous target of C$5 billion. Suncor has just under C$9 billion in debt currently.

The stock rose as much as 3.2% to hit C$56.30 in Toronto, the highest intraday price since September 2008. The shares are up about 32% this year, the fourth-best performance in the 41-company S&P/TSX Energy Index.

According to Bloomberg, Suncor's gains mark a major turnaround for a company that was a laggard of the Canadian oil industry two years ago, beset by a string of worker deaths. It noted the poor performance prompted activist investor Elliott to demand a major shakeup of the company and ultimately resulted in the appointment of former Exxon Mobil Corp. executive Rich Kruger as CEO last year.

When Elliott launched its campaign two years ago, it held a 3.4% economic interest in Suncor. The activist now holds a 4.1% direct stake that makes it the company's fourth-largest investor, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally, and/or from other media sources. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

Price: 56.05, Change: +1.48, Percent Change: +2.71