Samsung Electronics approved the largest shareholder return in South Korean corporate history on Friday. Its shares then fell as much as 2.6% in post-market trading.
The board signed off on a Samsung shareholder return of between 90 trillion and 110 trillion won for 2026. That is roughly $65bn to $80bn. It is about five times the company’s previous record of 20.3 trillion won, set in 2020. Samsung called it the largest ever by a Korean company.
About 30 trillion won goes out as cash dividends in the third quarter, including the regular payout. The detail gets fixed at an October board meeting. The board separately approved a buyback of roughly 15 trillion won of stock for employee compensation, which it says should also lift shareholder value.
Samsung framed the whole thing as a virtuous cycle, in which corporate growth and shareholder value reinforce one another. Investors read the filing rather differently.
Everything else waits until January.
