President Joe Biden’s administration is targeting U.S. corporate stock buybacks in his 2023 budget plan announced on March 28 in an effort to discourage businesses from using profits to “enrich executives.” Companies buying back their own shares on the open market is not a new phenomenon, with a record $319 billion of new share buybacks having been authorized so far this year, according to Goldman Sachs data. At the same time last year, there were $267 billion in buybacks authorized. However, under Biden’s new legislation, company executives would be required to hold on to company shares for several years after receiving them and would be prohibited from selling in the years after a stock buyback. Details regarding how long the prohibition of selling would last were not available in the budget plan but the freeze may last up to three years, according to a Monday DealBook report. Stock buybacks benefit companies by allowing them to raise the share …