SK Corp. Decides to Buy Back Treasury Shares Worth 200 Billion Won, Representing 1% of Market Cap

Fulfillment of Mid- to Long-Term Shareholder Return Policy Commitment
Repurchase of Treasury Shares Worth 200 Billion KRW Over 6 Months

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghoon Jung] SK Inc. announced on the 30th that it held a board meeting and resolved to repurchase 200 billion KRW worth of treasury shares to enhance shareholder value. This amount exceeds 1% of its market capitalization.

SK Inc. plans to carry out the treasury stock repurchase within a six-month contract period through a securities firm trust agreement. The treasury shares acquired through this trust contract will be entirely canceled after the contract period ends and upon separate board approval.

This decision to repurchase treasury shares is to implement the shareholder return policy promised by SK Inc. at its regular shareholders' meeting in March. At the last shareholders' meeting, SK Inc. announced that starting this year, instead of increasing dividends, it would use special dividend funds to repurchase at least 1% of its market capitalization in treasury shares annually until 2025.

Since 2018, SK Inc. has paid at least 30% of its subsidiaries' regular dividend income as basic dividends to shareholders, while operating investment returns as special dividend funds, increasing the annual dividend from 5,000 KRW per share in 2018 to 8,000 KRW last year.

As an investment specialist company, SK Inc. aims to maximize medium- to long-term shareholder value and total shareholder return by linking investment profits with shareholder returns. SK Inc. is accelerating execution under the vision of achieving sustainable growth as an expert value investor based on ESG management. Total shareholder return refers to the rate of return measured by combining stock price fluctuations (stock valuation gains or losses) and dividends.

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SK Inc. is also committed to board-centered management and enhancing shareholder rights. At the end of last year, it completely revised its corporate governance charter, expanded communication with shareholders and other stakeholders to cover overall ESG (environment, social, governance) management, and newly established a reporting obligation for shareholder communication committee members to the board.

Lee Sung-hyung, Chief Financial Officer of SK Inc., said, "Despite the uncertain market environment, SK Inc. continues to grow sustainably centered on its four core businesses, and to translate these achievements into shareholder value, we decided to repurchase treasury shares. By consistently implementing our shareholder return policy, we will be recognized as a trusted ESG-leading company by our shareholders."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.