SK(309,500 +1.31%)SK Holdings, the group’s investment-specialized holding company, has decided to pay its shareholders a dividend of 7,000 won per share, the largest in history.
SK held a board meeting on the 9th and decided to pay a ending dividend of 6,000 won per share following the interim dividend (1,000 won per share) implemented in August last year. The total dividend amount is 370 billion won, the largest since the launch of the integrated holding company in 2015. Compared to the previous year, it increased by 120 billion won.
After making the first interim dividend in 2018, SK has been striving to improve shareholder value by steadily continuing interim dividends every year. The total annual dividend increased by about 77% in 4 years from 209 billion won in 2016.
SK is implementing an active dividend policy of’if investment profits are realized, they are reflected in dividend sources and shared with shareholders’. Last year, SK invested in Watson in China, the No.1 global copper foil manufacturer, Chin Data Group, a super-large data center operator, and Roivant, a US biopharmaceutical company. The investment income generated from the sale of some of SK Biopharm’s IPO and ESR, a global logistics platform company, was also used as a source of dividend.
Last month, SK E&S invested 1.6 trillion won in plug power, a hydrogen energy company in the United States, and is also strengthening investments in eco-friendly energy. Through this, we plan to focus our capabilities on laying the foundation for growth centered on the four core businesses, such as green, bio, digital, and advanced materials.
SK received A grade for six consecutive years from 2015 to last year in the evaluation of’ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Excellent Company’ hosted by the Korea Corporate Governance Service. In November of last year, it was selected as the best company in the conglomerate group in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) evaluation for the second year in a row.
An SK official said, “We will pursue growth of the company and increase shareholder value by innovating the business model centering on ESG management and establishing a virtuous investment cycle structure through realization of investment returns.”
Reporter Oh Hyeong-joo [email protected]
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