Abstract
Purpose - The purpose of this study is to analyze the effect of investment by the National Pension Service, which has a high share as a single fund, on the dividend payout ratio. Design/methodology/approach - This study secured a share through DART of the Financial Supervisory Service and disclosure of the National Pension Service. We also used a fixed-effects model and 2SLS to analyze the data. Findings - First, it was found that there was a possibility of conflicting interests among shareholders concerning the company's dividend payment policy. Second, in the range of 3% to 4.9% of the National Pension Service shareholding, an additional increase in the holding ratio was found to have a positive (+) effect on the dividend rate. Third, after the introduction of the Stewardship Code, it was found that the increase in ownership of the fund had a positive (+) effect on the company's dividend payout ratio, regardless of the share ratio range. Moreover, the relationship between the fund ownership and the dividend payout ratio showed a clear positive relationship when free cash flow was high along investment opportunities were low. Research implications or Originality - First, This study included less than 5% of the share in the analysis. Second, We used the recent changes in fund shareholder activities. Third, We tested an instrumental variable to confirm the relationship between the National Pension Service share and the dividend ratio.