South Korean listed companies paid out a record amount of dividends in 2015 to meet growing demand from shareholders and go with the government's investor-friendly policy, market watchers said Monday.

According to the data compiled by KDB Daewoo Securities Co., listed companies' combined dividend payouts were estimated at 22.29 trillion won ($18.96 billion) last year, up 35 percent from the previous year's 16.5 trillion won.

An estimate by the Eugene Investment & Securities Co. also put the 2015 figure at 18 trillion won, expecting the dividends to hit a fresh high.

The record dividend payout came as local firms have adopted the shareholders-friendly measure to attract more investors amid the government's pressure to raise dividend payouts.

"Listed firms have enjoyed an increase in their net profits over the past four consecutive quarters, enabling them to return more to investors," said Daewoo researcher Kim Sang-ho.

"They are expected to be more proactive in paying out dividends to circumvent higher tax rates," he added, citing the government's tax revision to levy more on excessive corporate cash reserves in a broader effort to encourage companies to spend more on wages, dividends and investment.

Samsung Electronics Co., the country's top-cap firm pledged last October to utilize free cash flows over the next three years to pay out dividends and buy back shares as part of efforts to return profit to shareholders.

No. 1 automaker Hyundai Motor Co. has announced its mid- to long-term plan to increase dividend payouts by up to 30 percent, and the country's top chipmaker SK Hyunix has vowed to expand the amount by up to 20 percent.

Companies here have been stingy in paying dividends, a key reason why South Korean stocks are undervalued. Their dividend payout ratio stands at 22.4 percent as of 2014, far below the average of 47.7 percent of other countries, according to the main bourse operator Korea Exchange. (Yonhap)