About 80% of Doosan Robotics shares that Doosan Corp. transferred to brokerages last year through price return swap (PRS) contracts have been released into the market. Brokerages conducted two block deals this month alone, selling down approximately 9.6 million shares to institutional investors. The remaining 2.1 million shares are likely to be sold through block deals as well, but the recent correction in robot stocks, which had been rising sharply, is cited as a variable.
According to investment banking (IB) industry sources on the 19th, 5 million shares of Doosan Robotics were sold through a block deal the previous day (18th). The sale price was 107,525 won per share, an 8.9% discount from the previous day's closing price of 117,900 won. The total deal size was 537.6 billion won, with Korea Investment & Securities and UBS managing the transaction.
The shares sold this time represent approximately 43% of the total 11.7 million Doosan Robotics shares that Doosan Corp. transferred to brokerages through PRS contracts last December. At the time, seven brokerages — KB Securities, Korea Investment & Securities, NH Investment & Securities, Kiwoom Securities, Daishin Securities, Shinyoung Securities, and Yuanta Securities — took on the shares. On the 7th of this month, they first sold 4.6 million shares at 95,382 won per share. The total deal size was 438.8 billion won, again led by Korea Investment & Securities and UBS.
The brokerages' decision to resume block deals in less than two weeks is attributed to Doosan Robotics' stock price trajectory. When the PRS contracts were signed last December, the reference price was 81,000 won per share, but the stock has trended upward since, increasing the incentive to recover investments. Under the PRS contract structure, the difference between the sale price and the reference price of the underlying asset is settled at maturity or settlement, suggesting that a substantial settlement payment likely flowed to Doosan Corp.
The remaining 2.1 million shares are also likely to be sold via block deal. However, the recent correction in robot stocks — driven by profit-taking selling pressure after a sharp rally — is cited as a variable. On the day, leading robot stock Rainbow Robotics fell 10.72%, while LG Electronics (-11.66%) and Hyundai Motor (-8.90%), which had recently drawn attention on physical AI business expectations, also closed sharply lower.
