To get a sense of who is truly in control of Hengan International Group Company Limited (HKG:1044), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual insiders with 45% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And last week, insiders endured the biggest losses as the stock fell by 3.4%.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Hengan International Group, beginning with the chart below.

Check out our latest analysis for Hengan International Group

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Hengan International Group?

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.

Hengan International Group already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Hengan International Group's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Hengan International Group. Because actions speak louder than words, we consider it a good sign when insiders own a significant stake in a company. In Hengan International Group's case, its Senior Key Executive, Lin Chit Hui, is the largest shareholder, holding 23% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 21% and 6.0% of the stock. Interestingly, the second-largest shareholder, Man Bok Sze is also Top Key Executive, again, pointing towards strong insider ownership amongst the company's top shareholders.

On looking further, we found that 52% of the shares are owned by the top 4 shareholders. In other words, these shareholders have a meaningful say in the decisions of the company.

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 Hengan International Group

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.

Our information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Hengan International Group Company Limited. Insiders own HK$19b worth of shares in the HK$43b company. That's quite meaningful. Most would say this shows a good degree of alignment with shareholders, especially in a company of this size. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 28% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Hengan International Group better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks for example - Hengan International Group has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

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.