Hanwha Corp. (000880.KS), which recently announced a spin-off of its Life and Tech divisions, held a meeting with retail shareholders to share its corporate vision and plans to enhance shareholder value.
The company said Wednesday that it held a meeting for retail shareholders at NH Investment & Securities headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, on January 21. The meeting was arranged to help individual shareholders understand the spin-off approved by Hanwha Corp.'s board on January 14 and to strengthen communication and shareholder trust. About 50 individual investors attended.
At the meeting, Hanwha Corp. cited "resolving the conglomerate discount" through business portfolio optimization as the core purpose of the spin-off. The company explained it would clarify the business identity of both the surviving and newly established entities, and induce market revaluation through optimized strategy and investment for each business segment.
"As a conglomerate, we have not been properly valued in the market, so we expect this spin-off will allow us to fully reflect the value of our subsidiaries," said Han Sang-yoon, executive vice president in charge of investor relations at Hanwha Corp.
The company also reiterated its commitment to expanding shareholder return policies. It reaffirmed its intention to execute shareholder return measures announced at the time of the spin-off disclosure, including cancellation of all 4.45 million treasury shares excluding employee compensation portions and setting a minimum dividend per share of 1,000 won for common stock. The company added it would consider continuous dividend expansion based on subsidiary growth.
Industry observers view Hanwha Corp.'s decision to hold a retail shareholder meeting as an attempt to preemptively address potential concerns that may arise during the spin-off process. As of the end of 2024, the largest shareholder and related parties hold 56% of Hanwha Corp.'s shares, while minority shareholders hold 32.6%. For the spin-off to be approved at the shareholders' meeting, it requires approval from two-thirds of voting rights of attending shareholders, with affirmative votes representing at least one-third of total issued shares. Given the large stake held by major shareholders, the likelihood of the spin-off passing at the shareholders' meeting is very high.
However, since this spin-off is also connected to management succession and affiliate separation, the move appears intended to preemptively prevent potential concerns and highlight that the decision is ultimately favorable to shareholders when considering shareholder value enhancement measures.
Positive evaluations from individual shareholders emerged during the Q&A session. One shareholder said, "I highly appreciate the company's plans to enhance shareholder value, including treasury stock cancellation," and asked whether there were additional shareholder return policies. Hanwha Corp. responded, "There are no confirmed plans at present, but if we consider them in the future, we will communicate transparently through disclosures."
A Hanwha Corp. official said regarding the shareholder meeting, "Following this meeting, we plan to continue strengthening shareholder communication, including holding meetings for overseas investors in Hong Kong and Singapore." The official added, "We will continue to strengthen transparent management and ongoing shareholder communication, and do our best to receive proper corporate valuation in the market."
