SK hynix will buy about 40 trillion won worth of its own shares on the open market and cancel all of them to boost shareholder value. During the 2025–2027 shareholder return policy period, it will return at least 50% of cumulative free cash flow (FCF) to shareholders, combining share repurchases and cancellations with cash dividends.
SK hynix disclosed on the 19th that it decided to acquire 24,070,000 common shares for 40,004,340,000,000 won. The purpose of the purchase is to enhance shareholder value by canceling treasury shares.
The planned acquisition amount was calculated based on the closing price of 1,662,000 won on the 18th, the day before the board resolution. The planned shares to be acquired are about 3.3% of the 730,492,365 total shares outstanding. The actual number of shares acquired may change depending on future share price fluctuations.
The share buyback will be carried out as an open-market purchase from the 20th to Nov. 19. The executing broker is SK Securities. The maximum number of shares that can be ordered for purchase in a single day is 2,407,000. SK hynix plans to cancel all of the shares acquired in this buyback after the purchase is completed.
SK hynix said it decided on this share repurchase and cancellation because it judged that the company's intrinsic value—such as business competitiveness, cash generation, and mid- to long-term growth potential—was not fully reflected in the current share price. As of the end of the second quarter this year, net cash stood at about 69 trillion won.
The decision also effectively accelerates the three-year shareholder return policy SK hynix released in Nov. 2024. At the time, SK hynix said it would carry out shareholder returns within 50% of cumulative FCF for 2025–2027, and noted it would consider early returns before the policy expires if FCF increases meaningfully with improved results.
Through this disclosure, SK hynix said it will expand the shareholder return scale from the existing "within 50% of cumulative FCF" to "50% or more." It will combine share repurchases and cancellations with cash dividends, and will also review plans to increase dividends, including existing fixed dividends and special dividends.
According to the company, the 40 trillion won cancellation of treasury shares is the largest among domestically listed firms. SK hynix plans to pursue additional shareholder returns while maintaining a stable financial structure, as it is on track to meet its financial soundness targets.
As of the disclosure date, SK hynix holds a total of 1,625,769 treasury shares. That includes 1,625,696 common shares acquired within the scope of distributable income and 73 shares acquired through other methods.
Since the start of this year, SK hynix has canceled 15,300,000 of its previously held treasury shares and disposed of 452,032 shares. The newly acquired treasury shares will also be fully canceled after the purchases are completed.
An SK hynix official said, "Within the policy period, taking into account cash flow, market conditions, and distributable income, we plan to pursue additional shareholder returns by combining share repurchases and cancellations with dividends," adding, "We will provide details on the scale and method after a board resolution at the time of the third-quarter earnings announcement."