The market response was not positive after Samsung introduced a record shareholder return plan. The company ' s share price fell to about 257,000 won, and the expected increase in returns was reversed. Investors are more concerned that repurchases do not meet higher expectations.
The scale of return is up.
According to this disclosure, Samsung plans to return 90 trillion to 110 trillion won to shareholders in 2026, or between 65 billion and 79 billion dollars. This is about five times the company ' s highest record in the previous year.
The programme also includes approximately 30 trillion won of cash dividends in the third quarter and maintains the commitment to return 50 per cent of the free cash flow to shareholders. However, even though the total was at a new high, the market still considered the buy-back arrangement weak.
AI Chip Cycle Raises Expectations
The market reacted strongly to the recovery of the AI-enabled storage chip scene. The increased demand for advanced storage and data centre hardware has led to improved profitability of semiconductor enterprises and increased demand for cash returns from shareholders.
This trend does not occur only on Tristar. Recently, the chip stock rebounded, behind which the market was refocusing on AI infrastructure needs. The companies Young Weida, Mei Gwang and Optimus remain important trading lines for the current AI chip plate.
The Korean market is weak.
The collapse of the Sanstar stock price has also slowed down the overall performance of the Korean stock market. The KOSPI index dropped close to 3 per cent, and the SK Hercules dropped about 2.7 per cent. After a round of growth driven by AI, the market's focus on large technology companies has shifted to whether the return of capital is sufficiently positive.