SK Hynix Reviews Potential 16 Trillion Won Special Dividend Ahead of Results
Key Facts
SK Hynix is reviewing additional shareholder-return measures, while media reports say it is considering a special dividend of about 16 trillion won, without the company confirming the decision or its value. In a filing on October 26, the company said it was reviewing options to enhance shareholder value and that nothing had been finalized as of that date. It added that it would announce additional measures when it releases its third-quarter results, following a board decision. A potential special dividend of about 16 trillion won was reported by Reuters, citing media sources. With results due in two days, the company’s disclosure of the board’s decision is the next opportunity to learn whether the proposal will become an actual measure.
Another report linked the potential payout to Hynix’s gains from its investment in Kioxia, estimating those gains at about 20 trillion won in the first half of 2026. The report said the company intended to distribute most of those gains, but did not present this as a confirmed decision by Hynix. The 16 trillion won figure therefore remains an estimate circulating in reports, and the alleged funding source remains attributed to the report. The company did not disclose an amount for a special dividend in its filing or confirm that it had chosen this option. Special dividends are among the tools the company has previously said it was considering to expand payments to shareholders.
The review comes after Hynix completed early a 40 trillion won share buyback program that it announced in August, with the repurchased shares earmarked for cancellation. In announcing the program, the company said shareholder returns over the 2025-2027 period would exceed 50% of cumulative free cash flow through buybacks and cash dividends. It also listed fixed and special dividends among the options under consideration to expand payments. This means that any dividend discussed in the reports, if approved, would be an additional measure within a broader capital-return policy. But the October 26 filing did not finalize the form or size of the additional measures.
Hynix’s connection to Kioxia dates to an investment in Toshiba’s former memory business, in which the company participated in 2018 as part of a consortium led by Bain Capital and invested 395 billion yen. Those businesses became Kioxia, according to a Chosun Biz report. As background to its capital-return policy, Hynix said its net cash stood at about 69 trillion won at the end of the second quarter of 2026. Results for the same period showed cash and cash equivalents reaching 88 trillion won, while total debt fell to 18.6 trillion won. The company presented these figures in its quarterly results, while its available disclosures did not specify any portion of those balances for a potential special dividend.
The shares reacted to the reports in Seoul trading on Monday, with Hynix rising as much as 3% before giving up some of its gains. In the same session, Samsung Electronics fell as much as 1.9%, according to Bloomberg via Moneycontrol. Hynix’s share move followed reports of the potential dividend and Kioxia investment gains, but the company did not link the stock’s movement to any final decision in its filing. Shares repurchased under the buyback program were slated for cancellation after the program was completed ahead of schedule. The company said it would announce additional return measures after the board’s decision.
Hynix is scheduled to release its third-quarter results on October 28, 2026, before 9:00 a.m. Seoul time, with its investor call set to begin at 9:00 a.m. the same day. The company said it would announce additional shareholder-return measures alongside the results and after a board decision. The expected disclosure sets a specific date for learning whether the company will announce a dividend or another measure, and whether it will disclose its value. Until a decision is issued, the dividend of about 16 trillion won and Kioxia gains estimated at about 20 trillion won remain figures reported by the media. Hynix has not yet announced approval of the dividend or set an amount for it.