Korean media: Samsung Electronics plans to launch a 150 trillion Korean won shareholder return plan, with a scale that may set a record for Korean listed companies

BlockBeats News: On August 20th, according to the Korea Economic Daily, Samsung Electronics plans to announce a shareholder return plan worth approximately KRW 150 trillion this month, exceeding the KRW 100 trillion amount reported by other media earlier today. It is expected to include measures such as stock repurchase and cancellation, as well as special dividends, and the scale may reach a new historical high for Korean listed companies. According to industry insiders, Samsung Electronics plans to hold a board meeting this month to review relevant shareholder return plans. Previously, the market had expected the maximum return scale to reach 200 trillion Korean won, but considering the company's basic principle of "using 50% of free cash flow (FCF) for shareholder returns", the final scale is expected to be between 150 trillion and 160 trillion Korean won. Samsung Electronics executives have stated that with the recovery of the storage chip industry, the company's cash creation ability has significantly improved. They are currently researching various solutions to enhance shareholder value and will determine plans that can make shareholders feel the actual benefits while adhering to the principle of shareholder return. The market believes that the large-scale shareholder return this time mainly benefits from the performance improvement brought by the super cycle of storage semiconductors. Securities firms estimate that Samsung Electronics' annual free cash flow this year will be approximately KRW 263 trillion, and the cumulative free cash flow during the shareholder return policy cycle from 2024 to 2026 is expected to be approximately KRW 319 trillion. Based on a 50% return ratio, the total return funds are approximately KRW 160 trillion. After deducting KRW 39.1 trillion that has been executed and planned to be executed, the remaining funds are close to KRW 120 trillion. The market expects that Samsung Electronics may use its remaining funds to add large-scale special dividends in addition to maintaining its regular annual dividend of 1668 Korean won per share. At the same time, the company may also promote large-scale stock repurchases and cancellations to reduce market concerns about employee incentives leading to increased stock circulation and enhance shareholder value. Industry insiders say that after SK Hynix, Samsung Electronics has also launched a large-scale shareholder return plan, which may become an important factor driving up the valuation of the South Korean stock market. [Original link]