JD shares dropped more than 9% in premarket trading.
Tencent Holdings Ltd.plans to distribute more than $16 billion ofJD.com Inc.shares as a one-time dividend, representing a near-retreat from the Chinese e-commerce firm that is stoking concerns it will pull away from other marquee investments.
Tencent plans to give out 457.3 million Class A shares in JD.com, representing about 86.4% of its total stake and nearly 15% of the online retailer’s total issued shares, according to a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange. At Wednesday’s close, the shares in the proposed distribution were worth HK$127.7 billion ($16.4 billion). Tencent, which controls about 17% of JD.com, will hold roughly 2.3% of the e-commerce company’s shares after the handout, JD.com said in a separate statement.