Home > About Us > Sustainability Management > Sustainability Report > Sustainability Report 2011 > Relations with Shareholders and Investors

Relations with Shareholders and Investors

Increasing management transparency and forging close, healthy relationships with all of our stakeholders


The Kobe Steel Group strives to increase its corporate value as a whole by pursuing business development from a medium- and long-term perspective. As part of these efforts, we naturally place a high priority on returning profits to shareholders, and recognize the importance of enhancing the transparency of our operations through open communication with all stakeholders, including shareholders and investors. To that end, we are committed to the appropriate and timely disclosure of information and to its widespread release.

Returns to Shareholders

Kobe Steel places a high priority on returning profits to shareholders and is committed to increasing its overall corporate value by pursuing business operations from a medium- and long-term perspective.

The distribution of profits is decided comprehensively on the basis of various factors, including the company's current financial condition; trends in business performance; and future demand for capital. Dividends are determined with an eye toward achieving continuous and stable distribution, taking into consideration such factors as each period's business results and the payout ratio.

For internal reserve funds, we strive to improve profitability by ensuring adequate investment for future growth and make ongoing efforts to improve and strengthen our financial structure.

For the foreseeable future, we will distribute profits in accordance with our business results, targeting a dividend payout ratio of 15% to 25% of our consolidated net profit.

Surplus funds are distributed according to our Articles of Incorporation, which are determined by the Board of Directors on the basis of the Companies Act, Section 459, Article 1 and Companies Act, Section 460, Article 1.

Accordingly, dividends are in principle paid out by Board order twice a year, at the end of the first and second terms, as stipulated by the Articles of Incorporation. For dividends to be paid out on any other date, the date must be designated separately by the Board.

Dividend Payouts
Dividend payouts

* 2008 dividend payout ratio not applicable due to posting consolidated net loss

Dividend payouts
Postcards reporting quarterly results (in Japanese)

Postcards reporting quarterly results (in Japanese)

Shareholdings

Shareholdings by Type of Ownership (as of March 31, 2011)
Shareholdings by Type of Ownership (as of March 31, 2011)

Information Disclosure

To maintain the trust and support of shareholders and investors over the long term, we take very seriously our responsibility to provide information and are working hard to make timely and appropriate disclosures of corporate information and financial data.

Information disclosure is made in strict observance of statutory disclosure standards and based on stock exchange rules for the timing of disclosures. It is our aim to have the company's business conditions and activities widely understood for an accurate appraisal of corporate value, through the active, prompt and ongoing issuing of disclosable information relevant to investment decisions, even in cases where the timing rules do not apply.

Business reports for shareholders (in Japanese)

Business reports for shareholders (in Japanese)


Communicating with Shareholders and Investors

Communicating with Shareholders

Shareholders' meetings are seen as the forum for direct communication with shareholders. To encourage as many as possible to attend, we send out invitations well in advance and choose dates that do not conflict with other major shareholders' meetings. Shareholders are able to vote via the Internet (including cell phones).

To help shareholders deepen their understanding of the Kobe Steel Group, we also initiated factory tours in fiscal 2007. To date, we have organized tours of our steel operations at the Kakogawa Works and Kobe Works, our aluminum operations at the Moka Plant and our manufacturing operations at the Takasago Works, including steel castings and forgings and industrial machinery. Other tours will be held at various locations in the future.

Shareholder tour at Moka Plant

Shareholder tour at Moka Plant


Shareholder tour at Kobe Works

Shareholder tour at Kobe Works


Communicating with Institutional Investors

Briefings on financial results are held four times a year for institutional investors and securities analysts in Japan, to give them a better understanding of our management policies, operating results and financial position.

We also organize individual consultation sessions and make every effort to maintain ongoing communication with institutional investors and securities analysts, both at home and overseas.

Communicating with Individual Investors

We publish our financial statements, annual reports, and other information for individual investors online via the Kobe Steel website ( www.kobelco.com). This Sustainability Report is available on the Environmental Management site.

We also publish Japanese quarterly reports in postcard form, in August and February, and organize explanatory meetings aimed at individual investors in an effort to further deepen public understanding of the Kobe Steel Group.

The Kobe Steel Group will continue to strive for greater information disclosure and quality improvements in communication. By promoting IR activities, we hope to maintain the trust of shareholders and investors for many years to come.

The Kobe Steel website was relaunched with a clearer layout on April 1, 2010.

The Kobe Steel website was relaunched with a clearer layout on April 1, 2010.