GigaDevice's Controlling Shareholder Plans Over ¥1B Increase After Cashing Out ¥4.4B
Claire Weston
GigaDevice's (603985) controlling shareholder Zhu Yiming announced a planned stake increase of at least ¥1 billion the same day he completed a ¥4.4 billion sell-down — while the stock has already halved in July, falling 55%, exposing a stark gap between surging earnings and collapsing confidence.
He just sold ¥4.4 billion — why buy back now?
Between May 6 and June 12, Zhu Yiming sold 11.11 million shares via block and on-market trades at ¥339–539 per share, netting ¥4.4 billion — the full upper limit of his original plan.
On the same day the sell-down was disclosed, he announced a planned purchase of at least ¥1 billion in shares between December 13, 2026 and July 29, 2027, with no price cap.
This means → he sold 4.4 billion at the top and is promising to buy back at least 1 billion over the next seven and a half months — roughly one quarter of what he took out.
In plain terms = sell four dollars' worth, promise to buy one dollar back. The signal itself comes at a discount.
What else is in the support package?
Zhu also proposed a company-level share buyback of ¥1–2 billion, with shares to be cancelled to reduce registered capital. The buyback price is capped at 150% of the 30-trading-day average before board approval.
He further pledged no additional sales for 12 months from July 29.
This means → a buyback-and-cancel directly shrinks the float and lifts earnings per share — a more tangible prop for the stock than a personal stake increase alone.
Yet the fact that all three moves — buy, buyback, lock-up — were announced on the same day signals that management knows confidence is broken.
Earnings grew tenfold — so why has the stock halved?
On July 9, GigaDevice guided H1 net profit at roughly ¥6.9 billion, up about 1,099% year-on-year, with revenue of about ¥11.5 billion, up roughly 177%.
Yet on July 29 the stock closed at ¥364.03, down 6.81% on the day and 55% for July alone, giving a market cap of about ¥255.5 billion.
The stock triggered an abnormal-volatility notice after its closing price declined by a cumulative 20%+ over three consecutive sessions. The company said operations are normal with no material change.
This reflects a market that is no longer pricing what was earned, but worrying whether the growth rate can last — and the controlling shareholder's large high-price sell-down only deepens that doubt.
How much has the controller's stake actually shrunk?
Before the sell-down, Zhu and his concert parties held 58.81 million shares, or 8.39% of total equity.
Afterward, the stake fell to 47.70 million shares — 6.80%, a drop of 1.59 percentage points.
This means → the controller's stake was already modest; the sell-down thinned it further, marginally weakening his grip on the company.
Can a ¥1 billion pledge actually support the stock?
The minimum ¥1 billion purchase represents roughly 0.4% of the current ¥255.5 billion market cap.
In plain terms = for a company worth ¥255.5 billion, the controller is promising to buy four-tenths of one percent of its stock over seven and a half months — the practical impact on supply and demand is slim.
The variable that actually matters is not the pledge itself but whether H2 earnings can sustain the growth the market once priced in — if the pace slows materially, ¥1 billion of buying is a drop in the bucket.
Content is for reference only, not financial advice.