TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — TSMC has become the most widely held stock among publicly listed companies in Taiwan, with the number of its shareholders surpassing 1.8 million.

According to data from the Taiwan Depository & Clearing Corporation, the number of TSMC shareholders rose 660,000 from 1,140,974 on June 7 to 1,803,854 as of Thursday. The chipmaker overtook China Steel and the Cathay MSCI Taiwan ESG Sustainability High Dividend Yield ETF in shareholder count, per CNA.

The increase has been driven primarily by retail investors purchasing odd-lot shares. Shareholders holding fewer than 1,000 shares rose by 561,913 to 1,316,053.

In the Taiwan stock market, a standard trading unit is 1,000 shares. Orders below 1,000 shares are considered odd-lot orders.

Those holding between one and five standard trading units increased by 87,391 to 396,339. The number of shareholders with more than 1,000 full trading units declined slightly, falling by 32 to 1,527.

TSMC’s share price also climbed during the same period, rising from NT$839 to NT$967, marking a gain of NT$128, or 15.26%. This added NT$3.31 trillion (US$111 billion) to the company’s market capitalization, which now totals NT$25 trillion.

During the same period, China Steel added 10,137 shareholders for a total of 1,295,510. The Cathay ETF gained 450,987 shareholders, reaching 1,748,466.

TSMC is recognized as the world's largest contract chipmaker, holding a significant position in the global semiconductor market. The company serves a diverse customer base, including prominent technology companies such as Apple, Nvidia, and Microsoft.

Observations indicate that retail investors have continued to acquire TSMC shares, often through consistent, fixed-amount purchases. This pattern of accumulation, even during periods of lower share prices, suggests a perception among these investors of the company's potential for long-term growth, according to Winvest.