Taipei: Shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) rebounded to their prior ex-dividend levels as the stock market commenced trading on Tuesday morning. Upon the market's opening at 9 a.m., TSMC shares rose to NT$1,875.00 (US$58.59), marking an increase of NT$35 (US$1.09) or 1.90 percent from the opening reference price of NT$1,840.00.
According to Focus Taiwan, the opening reference price was NT$5 below Monday's closing price of NT$1,845. This discrepancy occurred due to TSMC stock's minimum trading interval of NT$5, despite a NT$6 per share dividend payout to shareholders for the third quarter earnings. By 9:44 a.m., TSMC shares had climbed 1.63 percent to NT$1,870.00, contributing to a 1.58 percent rise in the Taiex, Taiwan's benchmark index, which reached 33,868.49.
Dealers noted that TSMC's robust performance followed a 0.57 percent uptick in its American depositary receipts overnight. This increase was influenced by Nvidia Corp. CEO Jensen Huang's optimistic forecast at the GPU Technology Conference, predicting sustained global demand for AI chips. Additionally, a decline in international crude prices bolstered the local market.
In Taiwan, the ex-dividend date signifies when a stock begins trading after its cash dividend has been deducted from the stock price. Since 2019, TSMC has shifted to quarterly cash dividends instead of annual payouts. The ability of TSMC shares to return promptly to pre-ex-dividend levels indicates strong investor confidence in the company's fundamentals.
Notably, TSMC has consistently returned to its pre-ex-dividend levels on 21 occasions since adopting quarterly dividends in 2019. The company plans to distribute approximately NT$155.60 billion in cash dividends on April 9. TSMC Chairman C.C. Wei, holding 7.22 million shares, is expected to receive NT$43.306 million, while the National Development Fund, TSMC's largest shareholder with 1.65 billion shares, will collect NT$9.92 billion.