These are the two original news releases posted at the Nikkei Net on April 12th and 13th. They specifically say that the record date (to receive the new shares) is April 30th and go on to detail that the effective record date will effectively be April 28th, Friday. My Schwab Global Broker said that the last day for pre split trading was today, April 24th here in the US and that the stock would trade at the post split price tomorrow in the US and tonight in Japan (as is currently the case). Perhaps the discrepancy is related to the lag in actual delivery of the stock from the seller to the buyer. The danger may be that someone could buy the stock tomorrow at the post split price and think that they are going to get the additional two shares too. Even worse would be the situation if they were correct in that assumption <G>. I don't think that will happen, but I am not positive. Therefore I would not recommend that anyone sell any Softbank for the next few days. If that is widely followed, there won't be many shares available to buy and the stock should be driven up for the next few days. I believe this is the psychology that prompted Michelda to expect the up the limit moves for the next few days. So far his analysis is looking pretty good.
Wednesday, April 12, 2000
Softbank To Execute 3-For-1 Stock Split
TOKYO (Dow Jones)--Softbank Corp. (9984) will execute a 3-for-1 stock split June 23 for its shareholders on record as of April 30, the Internet conglomerate said Wednesday.
In practice, Softbank's shareholders on record as of April 28 will be subject to the stock split, as April 30 is a Sunday, Softbank said.
Softbank shares closed trading Wednesday on the Tokyo Stock Exchange at 71,300 yen, down 3,700 yen from Tuesday.
Thursday, April 13, 2000
Softbank Announces 3-For-1 Stock Split
TOKYO (Nikkei)--Softbank Corp. (9984) will split its stock 3-for-1 for shareholders of record as of the end of April, the company announced Wednesday.
The decision reflects a desire to increase liquidity in the stock, which although down 64% from the record high reached on Feb. 15, remains a daunting commitment for most investors. The minimum trading unit of 100 shares costs 7.13 million yen based on Softbank's Wednesday closing price of 71,300 yen, still 4.1 times the year-earlier level.
A split at the current price would make a block of Softbank shares worth 2.37 million yen.
Softbank will pay an annual dividend of 20 yen per share for the year ended March, unchanged from fiscal 1998. The dividend for the current financial year is under consideration.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange has asked companies with high stock prices to take action aimed at enhancing liquidity.
(The Nihon Keizai Shimbun Thursday morning edition) |
