Key Insights

• Insiders appear to have a vested interest in Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles' growth, as seen by their sizeable ownership
• 69% of the company is held by a single shareholder (Matao Cao)
• Using data from company's past performance alongside ownership research, one can better assess the future performance of a company

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles Co., Ltd. (SZSE:301345), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 69% to be precise, is individual insiders. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

As a result, insiders as a group endured the highest losses after market cap fell by CN¥420m.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles.

View our latest analysis for Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles?

Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.

Institutions have a very small stake in Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles. That indicates that the company is on the radar of some funds, but it isn't particularly popular with professional investors at the moment. If the company is growing earnings, that may indicate that it is just beginning to catch the attention of these deep-pocketed investors. It is not uncommon to see a big share price rise if multiple institutional investors are trying to buy into a stock at the same time. So check out the historic earnings trajectory, below, but keep in mind it's the future that counts most.

Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is the CEO Matao Cao with 69% of shares outstanding. This essentially means that they have significant control over the outcome or future of the company, which is why insider ownership is usually looked upon favourably by prospective buyers. With 3.5% and 1.9% of the shares outstanding respectively, Jinyun Zhongjiu Investment Partnership Enterprise (Limited Partnership) and Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles Co., Ltd., ESOP are the second and third largest shareholders.

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known.

Insider Ownership Of Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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.

It seems that insiders own more than half the Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles Co., Ltd. stock. This gives them a lot of power. So they have a CN¥3.3b stake in this CN¥4.8b business. It is good to see this level of investment. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 23% stake in Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Private Company Ownership

We can see that Private Companies own 4.2%, 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 Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Zhejiang Taotao Vehicles .

Of course this may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free free list of interesting companies.

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.