Why the Market Declined Despite Samsung Electronics' Shareholder Return Policy
This is because investors may feel that if they receive cash dividends, their stock price will fall due to the ex-dividend effect, and if they cannot recover that loss in a short period, they will incur losses. In addition, the income tax burden on dividends also negatively affected investor sentiment.
Particularly among individual investors, there is a clear preference for share buybacks over cash dividends. Cash dividends incur tax burdens, while share buybacks have the effect of increasing per-share value without direct tax imposition.
Expert Yoo Chang-hee explained the psychological impact of ex-dividend effects, stating, "From an investor's perspective, even if I receive 4,500 or 5,000 won in dividends, I will be hit by a 5,000 won dividend cut on that day. If I can't recover that 5,000 won, it can feel like a loss, right?"


