Samsung to buy back $7 billion worth of shares amid stock downturn

Samsung Electronics announced a multibillion-dollar share buyback of 10 trillion won ($7.17 billion).

A monitor screen at the Korea Exchange in western Seoul shows Samsung Electronics closing at 49,900 won on Thursday. [NEWS1]

Samsung Electronics announced a multibillion dollar share buyback after its stock saw its steepest rise in nearly four years.

The tech giant said Friday that it would repurchase 10 trillion won ($7.17 billion) in phases, in an attempt to further bolster its stock price. It will conduct the buyback from Monday through Feb. 17, 2025,

The company will purchase, then cancel, 3 trillion won worth of shares in the next three months, comprised of 50.14 million common shares and 6.91 million preferred shares.

The remaining 7 trillion won repurchase “will be authorized accordingly by the board,” according to Samsung Electronics, which added that further details regarding the buyback will be “decided in the future.”

Samsung Electronics shares closed low for six straight days until Thursday, when they closed at 49,900 won, below the 50,000 won mark for the first time since June 2020. The stock snapped the losing streak on Friday, bouncing back 7.21 percent to close at 53,500 won on Friday.

The company said the repurchase was intended to “boost its shareholder value, etc.,” in an electronic disclosure on Friday.

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]