BNK Financial Group sets quarterly dividend at 150 won per share

BNK Financial Group said Monday its board approved a quarterly cash dividend of 150 won per common share, for a total payout of 46 billion won ($34.8 million).

The dividend, which carries a yield of 1.1 percent based on the share price, will go to shareholders on the register as of Nov. 10 and be paid by Nov. 25. The payout covers 306.84 million shares and does not require a shareholders' meeting.

The group's investor relations division said the policy was revised to meet the requirements for high-dividend stocks, which receive separate taxation on dividend income. "We have stipulated that the total dividend will increase by more than 10 percent from the previous year and that the payout ratio will exceed 25 percent, and we aim for equal quarterly dividends so that the size of the payout can be predicted each year," the division said in a statement posted on the company's website.

The policy statement follows a first half in which the group reported net income of 412 billion won ($311 million), down 13.5 percent from 476 billion won a year earlier, on a return on equity of 7.60 percent and a common equity Tier 1 ratio of 12.14 percent.

BNK said it aims to reach a shareholder return ratio of 50 percent by 2027 and to expand it gradually thereafter, while maintaining equal quarterly dividends.