Dongwon to cancel 22.5 pct of shares to up shareholder value

SEOUL, South Korea's Dongwon Industries Co., the parent company of U.S.-based canned tuna company StarKist Co., said Tuesday it will cancel 22.5 percent of its outstanding shares to enhance shareholder value. Dongwon Industries acquired an entire stake in StarKist for US$363 million in 2008 in an expansion strategy. It is the holding company of canned tuna-to-logistics conglomerate Dongwon Group. In a board meeting held Tuesday, the company decided to cancel 10.47 million shares worth 329 billion won ($247 million) on May 2 to prop up its share price, Dongwon said in a statement. The news sent Dongwon Industries 26 percent higher to close at 39,550 won Tuesday, far outperforming the broader Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI)'s 1.1 percent loss. Shares in Dongwon Industries plunged 33 percent to 33,300 won at the end of 2023 from 49,350 won a year earlier. But the KOSPI rose 19 percent to 2,655.28 during the same period. The company's overall stocks will be reduced to 36.02 million following the c ancellation, the statement said. In August last year, the company cancelled 3.5 million treasury stocks, with plans to continue to cancel treasury shares in the following five years. Source: Yonhap News Agency