This article was published on March 19, 2025, at 4:06 p.m. on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove site.
ROBOTIS, which was of interest due to investments from LG Electronics, saw its stock price plummet after news that it would partition its autonomous driving division. The company stated that it does not plan to list the newly partitioned subsidiary for the time being, but it appears difficult to completely rule out the possibility of duplicate listings. In this context, if minority shareholders unite, the partitioning plan could be jeopardized.
According to the Korea Exchange on the 19th, ROBOTIS closed at 34,650 won, down 4,300 won (11.04%) from the previous trading day. The sharp decline in stock price is believed to be due to concerns about the duplicate listings of the subsidiary. The stock prices of robotics companies tend to focus on growth rather than performance, and if the autonomous driving division is listed separately, the corporate value related to that may not be reflected.
The company said there are no plans for additional listings within five years, but shareholders are expressing skepticism. The day before, ROBOTIS disclosed that "attracting investment for the newly partitioned company would be easier," suggesting plans to secure investors. It is common practice to open up a path for financial investor (FI) recovery through a listing if a FI is secured.
If the majority of shareholders opposing the partitioning exercise their right to request stock purchases, the company may not be able to buy all those shares, which could lead to the cancellation of the partitioning plan. The company announced that if the total stock purchase price for shares purchased under the request exceeds 10 billion won, it can withdraw the partitioning decision through a board resolution.
As of the end of last year, there were 46,029 minority shareholders of ROBOTIS, holding 8,074,431 shares (62.5%) out of a total of 12,904,485 shares. Considering the stock purchase request price of 36,811 won, it would take only 271,658 shares (10 billion won ÷ 36,811 won) to cancel the partitioning, which is only 3.4% of the shares held by minority shareholders.
This partitioning involves the partitioned newly established company (ROBOITIS) being 100% owned by the partitioned surviving company (ROBOTIS). Shareholders opposing the partitioning must express their dissent by May 1 and exercise their right to request stock purchases by the 26th of that month. The partition date is June 1.
Regarding the purpose of the partitioning, ROBOTIS explained, "Most of the revenue comes from the actuator business, but the development costs for the autonomous driving business account for a large portion, leading to continuous losses. Therefore, we aim to establish a newly partitioned company to resolve this." They further noted, "The surviving company intends to focus on the actuator business to secure profitability and relevant expertise to capture the physical artificial intelligence (AI) market."
ROBOTIS is a specialized robotics company that has succeeded in localizing actuators, essential components used in robotic joints. The largest shareholder is CEO Kim Byung-soo, holding 27.2% of the total shares. LG Electronics made an equity investment in ROBOTIS in 2017 and has maintained collaboration, currently holding a 7.45% stake in ROBOTIS. Last year's revenue was 30 billion won, a decrease of 3.1% compared to the previous year, while operating losses amounted to 2.973 billion won, a decrease of 43.8% during the same period.
A representative of ROBOTIS said, "There will absolutely be no duplicate listings of the subsidiary that shareholders are concerned about."
☞ Actuator: A device that changes a physical state using variations in electrical signals, such as motors, switches, speakers, and lamps.
☞ Physical AI: Refers to artificial intelligence (AI) deployed in physical devices like humanoid robots and autonomous vehicles.