Foreign stockholdings in South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. have reached an eight-year high with overseas investors snapping up its shares despite their overall selling mode on the local stock market, data showed Sunday.

As of Friday, foreign investors held 52.33 percent of the top-cap company on the local bourse, the highest proportion since June 13, 2006, according to data from the Korea Exchange and financial sources.

Last month, offshore investors bought a net 881.2 billion ($825 million) worth of Samsung shares.

In contrast, foreigners sold a net 2.41 trillion won worth of South Korean stocks on the main bourse alone, according to the data.

Market watchers said foreign investors seem to consider Samsung “undervalued” despite growing worries over its performance.

“Foreign investors appear to put a greater emphasis on the fact that Samsung’s shares remain undervalued,” said Lee Seung-hyuk, an analyst at Korea Investment & Securities Co. (Yonhap)