Samsung plans $72 billion shareholder return programme

Samsung plans $72 billion shareholder return programme

Thu, August 20, 2026 at 3:11 PM GMT+3 2 min read

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Samsung Electronics is set to announce a shareholder return programme worth more than 100 trillion won ($71.75 billion), according to Reuters, as the company looks to distribute record profits driven by AI-related chip demand.

According to Reuters, which cited MoneyToday's report based on unidentified industry sources, Samsung plans to convene a board meeting before the end of August to sign off on the programme. The programme will allocate 50% of Samsung's free cash flow and will include a special dividend. Samsung declined to comment on the reports.

The announcement would arrive a day after local rival SK Hynix revealed a 40 trillion won share buyback and cancellation plan — a record for shareholder returns by any publicly listed South Korean company.

Samsung posted a record quarterly operating profit of 89.5 trillion won for the second quarter of 2026, a 1,814% increase year on year. The company's Device Solutions division, which houses its memory chip operations, generated 127.5 trillion won in revenue and 89.2 trillion won in operating profit for the quarter, with AI server demand cited as the primary driver. Samsung said it has locked in contracts with its five largest global data center clients.

SK Hynix, the world's second-largest memory-chip maker behind Samsung, approved a plan on Wednesday to repurchase and cancel roughly 24.07 million shares, covering about 3.3% of its total shares outstanding, with the repurchase period running from Aug. 20 through Nov. 19. SK Hynix also said it plans to increase its shareholder return target for the 2025–2027 period, committing to direct more than half of cumulative free cash flow to investors, with further details on the enhanced payouts to be disclosed at its third-quarter earnings release. Both Samsung and SK Hynix have faced pressure from investors to distribute more of their swelling cash holdings as AI-driven memory demand has generated record earnings.