The number of small-scale shareholders in Samsung Electronics, one of South Korea’s most iconic “national stocks,” has dropped by more than 1.4 million over the past year. This decline is largely due to investors pulling out after expecting a rise in Samsung’s stock price but being disappointed by its poor performance throughout the year.
According to Samsung Electronics’ semi-annual report released on Aug 14., the total number of retail shareholders at the end of June stood at 4,247,611, collectively holding 67.66% of the company’s total issued shares.
This marks a 25.06% decrease (1,420,708) from the same period last year, when the number of retail shareholders was 5,668,319. Stocks with over 1 million retail shareholders are often called “national stocks.”
Although individual investors still hold a majority of Samsung Electronics shares, their numbers have been steadily declining, dropping below 4.5 million as of June this year, after already falling to 4,672,039 by the end of last year.
In early 2021, when Samsung Electronics’ stock price surged past 90,000 won, the number of retail shareholders neared 6 million. However, as the stock price started to fall after that peak, the rate of shareholder exits picked up.
Samsung Electronics’ stock price has dipped by 1.66%, from 78,500 won at the start of this year to 77,200 won as of yesterday (Aug 14). This performance is weaker compared to the KOSPI index, which dropped by 0.41% during the same period. Meanwhile, another major semiconductor company, SK Hynix, saw its stock price jump by 31.94% over the same period.
Last month, Samsung Electronics’ stock briefly climbed to 87,800 won on July 10., following an “earnings surprise” for the second quarter, sparking renewed hopes of reaching the “100,000 won milestone” for the stock. However, concerns over the profitability of its artificial intelligence (AI) business led to a broader decline in tech stocks, causing Samsung Electronics’ share price to fall back into the high 70,000 won range.
