POSCO Holdings (005490.KS) will secure a total of 2.5 trillion won by disposing of part of its stakes in listed subsidiaries POSCO International and POSCO DX. The move aims to secure investment funds to reshape its portfolio into a resource-centered business spanning lithium and energy beyond steel, with 16.7 trillion won to be invested over the next three years.
POSCO Holdings approved the stock and equity securities disposal decisions containing these details at a board meeting held on the 7th. The disposal targets are approximately 20.7% of POSCO International (047050) shares (about 36.43 million shares) and 15.4% of POSCO DX (022100) shares (23.39 million shares). The disposal amounts reach 2.0185 trillion won and 481.7 billion won, respectively. The scheduled disposal date is September 7.
POSCO Holdings explained the move as "securing strategic investment funds to resolve the holding company discount and enhance corporate value." Once the stake sales are completed, POSCO Holdings' ownership in POSCO International and POSCO DX will fall to 50%, but it will maintain its position as the largest shareholder.
To sell the stakes, POSCO Holdings will sign price return swap (PRS) contracts with NH Investment & Securities, Kiwoom Securities and others. A PRS is an over-the-counter derivative product that settles profits and losses from price fluctuations of the underlying asset with the counterparty. At the time of settlement, the disposal is made by mutually accounting for the difference between the actual stake sale amount and the reference price.
The stake sale is aimed at pursuing the 'Triple Core' strategy announced by POSCO Group Chairman Chang In-hwa at the CEO Investor Day early last month. Chang presented a blueprint to build a 'Triple Core' business system centered on steel as an 'industrial resource,' lithium, cathode materials and rare earths as 'strategic resources,' and liquefied natural gas (LNG) and renewable energy as 'energy resources.'
Through this, POSCO Group aims to achieve combined revenue of 187 trillion won and operating profit of 13.1 trillion won by 2035. At the time, it also presented a policy to optimize its ownership in listed subsidiaries to 50%, and is expected to soon dispose of its holdings exceeding 50% in POSCO Future M (58.2% stake).
