Samsung Electronics could follow a stock-market path similar to Apple’s if it materially boosts shareholder returns and is ultimately valued as a high-dividend stock over the medium to long term, Hana Securities said. Analyst Lee Jae-man argued that surging free cash flow gives Samsung room to strengthen dividends and buybacks, but said the company is unlikely to deliver a strong rerating or regain market leadership unless it makes that shift clear. For now, with Samsung’s shareholder return ratio relative to free cash flow at about 50% for 2024 through 2026, the stock may move broadly in line with the Kospi. Even so, Lee said Samsung’s excessive valuation discount and the drop in foreign ownership to the lowest level since 2010 leave it well positioned to lead a short-term rebound in the benchmark index. Hana compared that outlook with Apple’s history: Apple’s net income growth topped 70% from 2010 to 2012 as the stock rose 110%, then it increased dividends and share buybacks from 2013 to 2016, and later reasserted market leadership from 2019 to 2021 with a shareholder return ratio averaging 121% of free cash flow.