Kioxia has announced two major capital market moves alongside its latest earnings: a share buyback of up to ¥800 billion and a 3-for-1 stock split. The Japanese flash memory maker said strong demand for solid-state drives, or SSDs, used in AI data centers helped lift quarterly revenue and profit to record highs.
The company’s stock has been volatile in recent weeks. While operating performance remained strong, the exit of a key founding shareholder and guidance that fell short of the market’s most bullish expectations had weighed on the shares before the latest announcement.
Kioxia sets buyback at up to ¥800 billion
Kioxia said on July 31, 2026 that it will repurchase shares from Aug. 3 through Oct. 30, 2026, with the total amount capped at ¥800 billion. The company set a maximum of 30 million shares for the buyback, equivalent to about 5.5% of shares outstanding. According to ABMedia, this is the largest treasury stock program in the global memory chip industry and the first of this scale among memory makers.
The company also set a total shareholder return target of about 50% and said it plans to begin recurring dividends from fiscal 2028. ABMedia said the market sees the policy as supportive of a lower share count over time and higher value per share.
3-for-1 stock split aimed at lowering the entry threshold
Kioxia also disclosed a stock split plan designed to improve liquidity and attract more retail investors. The record date is Sept. 30, 2026, and the split will take effect on Oct. 1. Each existing share will be split into three.
The company said the measure is meant to lower the trading threshold per share and broaden its shareholder base. In Japan, the standard trading unit is 100 shares. Based on Kioxia’s current share price of ¥50,250, the minimum purchase amount is ¥5.025 million, or about NT$1.055 million, before fees and taxes. A 3-for-1 split would sharply reduce that barrier.
Quarterly revenue and operating profit hit record highs
For the latest quarter, Kioxia reported revenue of ¥1.767 trillion, up 1424% from a year earlier. Operating profit reached ¥1.27 trillion, more than 12 times higher year over year, while the operating margin came in at 72%.
The company said the sharp profit increase was driven mainly by an approximately 70% quarter-on-quarter rise in average selling prices, or ASP. Even so, both quarterly revenue and operating profit were slightly below market expectations. Together with a relatively cautious tone on the outlook, that has prompted discussion about whether the pace of AI infrastructure demand could cool. Kioxia said it plans to expand capacity only at a pace slightly above industry growth to avoid oversupply.
Share price rebounds after buyback and split announcement
Since listing at the end of 2024, Kioxia’s share price had surged with market enthusiasm, and at one point this year the company’s market value exceeded that of Toyota, according to the report. But Bain Capital completed the sale of its entire stake in mid-July, while Toshiba’s holding fell to 15.1%. After those large shareholders stepped back, Kioxia shares dropped more than 60% from their June peak.
ABMedia said Kioxia shares rose 10% on the latest news. That compared with declines of more than 7% for South Korean memory makers Samsung and SK Hynix on the same day.