Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by individual investors in Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• A total of 25 investors have a majority stake in the company with 40% ownership
• Institutional ownership in Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd is 16%

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Foshan Yowant Technology Co.,Ltd (SZSE:002291), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual investors with 60% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

While institutions who own 16% came under pressure after market cap dropped to CN¥8.8b last week,individual investors took the most losses.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd.

See our latest analysis for Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd?

Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.

We can see that Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd is not owned by hedge funds. Lyone Group Pte. Ltd. is currently the company's largest shareholder with 7.9% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 7.4% and 6.4% of the stock.

A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 25 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where no single shareholder has a majority.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

We can report that insiders do own shares in Foshan Yowant Technology Co.,Ltd. The insiders have a meaningful stake worth CN¥797m. Most would see this as a real positive. If you would like to explore the question of insider alignment, you can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public -- including retail investors -- own 60% of Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd. With this amount of ownership, retail investors can collectively play a role in decisions that affect shareholder returns, such as dividend policies and the appointment of directors. They can also exercise the power to vote on acquisitions or mergers that may not improve profitability.

Private Company Ownership

We can see that Private Companies own 15%, of the shares on issue. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Foshan Yowant TechnologyLtd you should know about.

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.