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Photo = Yonhap news |
[Alpha Biz= Paul Lee] Meritz Financial Holdings achieved its highest-ever performance last year, but National Pension Service (NPS) reduced its stake in the company.
According to Meritz Financial Holdings' report on Sunday, as of January 19, NPS held 12,952,279 shares (6.79%) of Meritz Financial, which is a 0.35 percentage point decrease from 7.14% (14,873,942 shares) on September 25, 2023.
Additionally, NPS changed its investment purpose in Meritz Financial from "general investment" to "simple investment". A simple investment means the pension fund does not intend to influence management decisions and will only exercise voting rights at shareholder meetings, while general investment is more active and could involve voting against board appointments or proposing higher dividends. This suggests that NPS has taken a more passive stance on Meritz Financial Holdings.
Industry analysts believe that NPS might have realized some profits given the substantial rise in Meritz Financial's stock price. As of September 25, 2023, the share price was 5,250 KRW, but it has since doubled, reaching 12,500 KRW recently.
This increase in stock price is attributed to strong financial performance and efforts to maximize shareholder value. Meritz Financial Holdings reported a 9.8% year-on-year increase in net income, reaching a record 2.33 trillion KRW in 2023.
Alphabiz Reporter Paul Lee(hoondork1977@alphabiz.co.kr)
