# Buyback Blackout Windows Buyback Blackout Windows is an indicator on [Vela](https://vela.luxalgo.com/chart), our next-generation charting platform, written in Pine Script®. Buyback Blackout Windows shades the recurring stretches when companies typically pause discretionary share repurchases: from 14 days before each fiscal quarter end until 2 days after results, using a 28-day estimated report lag or your own listed earnings dates. Entry and lift labels, a next-event projection and an in-versus-out return dashboard complete the overlay. - Indicator in the LuxAlgo Library, by LuxAlgo, published Jul 23, 2026. - Access: free. - Concepts: [Buyback Blackout Windows](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/concept/buyback-blackout-windows/) (primary) - Open on Vela: https://vela.luxalgo.com/chart?pineScriptCodeId=u9imwdnlmy6wlxqhccz70e3t - Page: https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/buyback-blackout-windows/ **Buyback Blackout Windows** brings [buyback blackout windows](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/concept/buyback-blackout-windows/), the recurring self-imposed pauses in discretionary corporate repurchases around earnings, to the chart for the first time. Each window opens a set number of days before the fiscal quarter end and lifts a set number of days after the earnings release, anchored to listed dates when provided, and to an estimated report lag otherwise. The build shades each window, labels entries and lifts, marks earnings dates and quarter-end boundaries, projects the next transition, and compares returns and volatility inside versus outside the windows. ## How to Trade the Buyback Blackout Windows? - **Blackout label and shading**: the discretionary corporate bid is assumed off. Flow context into earnings, never a standalone signal; pre-set programs keep executing. - **Lift label**: discretionary buying can typically resume; "(est)" means no listed date anchored the window. - **Next event projection**: the dotted guide dates the coming entry or lift before it arrives. - **Dashboard in/out rows**: average return and volatility inside versus outside windows. Evidence is mixed, so let the local numbers speak. ## Buyback Blackout Windows Settings - **Fiscal Quarter-End Months** (default Mar / Jun / Sep / Dec): off-cycle reporters pick the matching shifted cycle. - **Entry: Days Before Quarter End** (default 14): when each window opens. - **Lift: Days After Earnings Release** (default 2): when it closes. - **Estimated Report Lag (Days)** (default 28): assumed quarter-end-to-release gap when no date is listed. - **Earnings Dates (Optional)** (default empty): comma-separated YYYY-MM-DD releases that anchor lifts to actual publication. - **Date Matching Horizon (Days)** (default 60): how far past a quarter end a listed date may sit and still anchor that window. - Style toggles cover shading, labels, earnings markers, quarter-end lines, projection, and dashboard. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### How accurate are the windows? Approximations by design: blackout policies are internal and there is no official feed. Listed earnings dates pin each lift to the actual release, and the dashboard's report-lag row flags a mismatched fiscal cycle. ### How does this differ from other calendar effects? Effects like [Turn-of-Month Effects](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/turn-of-month-effects/) recur on the calendar itself; blackout windows follow each company's reporting cycle and trace a specific flow (the pause and resumption of the corporate bid) rather than a statistical seasonality. ### Does an active blackout mean the stock should fall? No. It removes one source of demand while results and macro news dominate any quarter. Read the shading as context, not a direction call. ## Related indicators - [Buy Sell Calendar](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/buy-sell-calendar/) (Day-of-week Effects): markdown at https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/buy-sell-calendar.md - [NFP Price Zones](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/nfp-price-zones/) (Macro Event Days): markdown at https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/nfp-price-zones.md - [Day Of Week Price Distribution](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/day-of-week-price-distribution/) (Day-of-week Effects): markdown at https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/day-of-week-price-distribution.md - [Periodic Activity Tracker](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/periodic-activity-tracker/) (Day-of-week Effects): markdown at https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/periodic-activity-tracker.md - [Seasonality Chart](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/seasonality-chart/) (Month-of-year Seasonality): markdown at https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/seasonality-chart.md - [Seasonality Widget](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/seasonality-widget/) (Day-of-week Effects): markdown at https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/seasonality-widget.md - [Weekly Stacked Daily Changes](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/weekly-stacked-daily-changes/) (Day-of-week Effects): markdown at https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/weekly-stacked-daily-changes.md - [Market Performance by Yearly Seasons](https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/market-performance-by-yearly-seasons/) (Month-of-year Seasonality): markdown at https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/market-performance-by-yearly-seasons.md --- Source: https://www.luxalgo.com/library/indicator/buyback-blackout-windows/ (LuxAlgo Library). Free to use with attribution: https://www.luxalgo.com/library/license/