이 기사는 2022년 01월 07일 09시51분 thebell에 표출된 기사입니다

Posco has pledged a stable dividend payout policy ahead of an extraordinary shareholders meeting slated for later this month where the South Korean steelmaker will seek approval to shift to a holding company structure.

The company said in Wednesday’s filing that it will pay out 30% of its consolidated net profit as dividends from fiscal year 2020 to fiscal year 2022, and will pay at least 10,000 won ($8.32) per share to shareholders as dividends in the following years.

The announcement seems to be aimed at persuading shareholders to support the company’s transition to a holding company system, which will be voted on at an extraordinary shareholders meeting scheduled for January 28.

Under the holding company structure, Posco will split off its steel business as a wholly owned subsidiary and become a holding company, tentatively called Posco Holdings. Its existing shareholders, who will own shares in the holding company, are concerned about a potential fall in corporate value due to the separation of the company’s core steel business.

“We will continue to stand by our mid-term dividend payout policy after shifting to a holding company system,” Posco said in the filing. “The transition to a holding company won’t affect the company’s consolidated net profits and thus dividend payments.”

Posco’s pledge to maintain a continued dividend payout ratio comes as a surprise to industry watchers. “The steel industry is highly sensitive to economic swings and that’s why steelmakers exhibit the relatively high volatility in profitability,” an analyst covering the steel industry said.

“Posco’s dividend payout ratio has been relatively high compared to those of its domestic peers, and now the company has vowed to maintain a 30% dividend payout ratio, which I think is a bold move.”

The steel industry has been in the recovery mood since last year. Posco reported a consolidated net profit of 5.6 trillion won in the first three quarters of 2021, more than a fivefold increase from a year earlier.

Posco has several subsidiaries including Posco International, Posco Energy and Posco Chemical, which will be placed under Posco Holdings after its shift to a holding company is completed.

Among holding companies of other South Korean conglomerates, SK Inc and LG Corp officially set their dividend payout ratios. SK Inc and LG Corp said they would pay 30% of consolidated net profit and 50% of non-consolidated net profit, respectively, as dividends.

It is worth to note that whereas SK Inc and LG Corp are controlled by families of the owners and some of the dividend payments are directed to their pockets, Posco is not such a company.

The largest shareholder of Posco is the National Pension Service of South Korea with a 9.75% stake, and foreign investors also together own more than 50% of the company.

Posco also said that it plans to retire some of its treasury shares later this year to increase shareholder value. (Reporting by Seo-young Kim)