À̹ÌÁö È®´ë Mainstone, the fourth-largest investor of Big Hit Entertainment, was among the main institutions that abandoned the stock soon after its Kospi listing.
The South Korean investment firm and its affiliate unloaded 1.58 million shares, or 4.44 percent of total outstanding shares, worth 364.4 billion won ($321 million) over the past four trading sessions since the stock went public last Thursday, according to Big Hit¡¯s regulatory filing.
Mainstone alone shed 1.2 million shares worth 275.9 billion won at an average price of 229,770 won per share during the period, bringing down its stake to 3.60 percent from 6.97 percent.
Mainstone dumped 328,132 shares on the first day and another 611,496 shares the next day, driving the stock¡¯s massive selloff. Big Hit shares had closed the two sessions down 4.4 percent and 22.3 percent, respectively. The stock extended the losses this week, tumbling 30 percent from its debut price.
Shares closed Thursday up 0.56 percent at 180,000 won.
À̹ÌÁö È®´ë [Photo by Yonhap]
Mainstone¡¯s special affiliate, Estone No. 1 Private Equity Joint Venture, also sold off 381,112 shares over the same period at 232,296 won apiece, profiting 88.5 billion won from the sale. Its stake has fallen to 2.19 percent to 1.12 percent.
Big Hit¡¯s much-awaited initial public offering, the biggest in Korea in three years, has proven disappointing.
After debuting strong at double its IPO price and experiencing a brief 30 percent surge, the stock crashed back to reality as the overheated speculation quickly wore off. Investors expressed wariness of the agency¡¯s over-reliance on the one boyband, which has been responsible for 90 percent of its revenue. The group¡¯s fate was also thrown into question as the seven members would need to serve their mandatory military duties as soon as next year.
Big Hit is bracing for another big selloff in the coming weeks. Some 1.52 million shares, or 35 percent of institutional holdings, are expected to flood the markets when the lockup period expires in a month.
By Kim Hyo-jin
[¨Ï Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]