[비즈한국] DB Insurance005830 is continuing its high-dividend policy. Securities analysts expect DB Insurance to pay out a significant amount in dividends next year as well. The largest shareholder of DB Insurance is Kim Nam-ho, Chairman of DB Group (51). In addition to Chairman Kim, the owner family holds a substantial amount of DB Insurance shares. This structure allows the owner family to benefit directly from increased dividends.
Jeong Jun-seop, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities, stated on the 8th regarding DB Insurance, "While the stock price is generally trending downward due to a very sluggish insurance loss reserve variance (the difference between expected and actual figures) in the first quarter, the appeal of high dividends remains unchanged, and the expected dividend yield is 6.2%, one of the highest among major financial stocks." DB Insurance stated that nothing has been decided yet regarding this year's year-end dividends.
In fact, DB Insurance has been increasing its dividends recently. The year-end dividend for 2024 was 6,800 won per share, which increased to 7,600 won per share for 2025. However, DB Insurance's consolidated net profit actually fell by 3.43% from 1.8516 trillion won in 2024 to 1.788 trillion won in 2025. During the same period, its separate net profit also decreased by 13.39%, from 1.7722 trillion won to 1.5349 trillion won. Dividends rose even as net profit declined.
DB Insurance's net profit continues to show a downward trend this year. According to the quarterly report, consolidated net profit fell by 44.46% from 431.4 billion won in the first quarter of last year to 239.6 billion won in the first quarter of this year. Amid this, DB Insurance recently acquired the U.S. insurance company Potegra for approximately 2.3 trillion won. A DB Insurance official explained, "First-quarter performance was sluggish due to a one-time major accident, but we expect performance to improve starting from the second quarter," adding, "Since we will be reporting earnings in our consolidated financial statements starting in the second half, the profits from the U.S.-based Potegra will be included."
Potegra's net profit last year was around 200 billion won. However, DB Insurance's first-quarter net profit this year is already down by about 200 billion won compared to the previous year. For this reason, there is no guarantee that DB Insurance's annual net profit will be higher than last year's, despite the acquisition of Potegra.
Separately, the DB Group owner family directly benefits from DB Insurance's high-dividend policy. The largest shareholder of DB Insurance is DB Group Chairman Kim Nam-ho, with a 9.74% stake. Chairman Kim's father, DB Group Founder Kim Joon-ki (82), and his older sister, DB Group Vice Chair Kim Joo-won (53), also hold 6.43% and 3.40% stakes in DB Insurance, respectively. Chairman Kim Nam-ho received 48.48435 billion won in dividends for the 2025 fiscal year from DB Insurance this year alone.
This is why some interpret that while shareholder return is the primary goal of the high-dividend policy, the owner family was also a consideration. Furthermore, Chairman Kim Nam-ho and the owner family have taken out significant loans from financial institutions using their DB Insurance shares as collateral. According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosures, as of May this year, 10.28% of the shares held by the owner family in DB Insurance have been provided as collateral to financial institutions.
In contrast, DB Insurance's stock price has not risen significantly. Although it briefly surpassed 200,000 won in February of this year, it currently remains at the 150,000 won level. Daishin Securities set a target price of 250,000 won for DB Insurance in February this year, but lowered it to 200,000 won in May. Daishin Securities analyst Park Hye-jin analyzed, "The rising risk loss ratio due to increased claims for 3rd and 4th generation medical expenses and surgery costs is a point of concern."
This also contrasts with the group's subsidiary, DB Financial Investment. DB Financial Investment's year-end dividend per share increased from 400 won in 2024 to 550 won in 2025. Its net profit surged by 80.32% from 52.9 billion won in 2024 to 95.5 billion won in 2025. Because of this, even though dividends were increased, the dividend payout ratio actually decreased from 30.64% in 2024 to 23.27% in 2025.
Regarding this, a DB Insurance official stated, "We plan to announce a new value-up policy in the second half and will strive to enhance shareholder value," adding, "Our dividend policy should be viewed as one prioritized to meet the government's value-up initiative."