Key Insights

• Significant control over Zhejiang FORE Intelligent TechnologyLtd by private companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• 52% of the business is held by the top 4 shareholders
• Ownership research, combined with past performance data can help provide a good understanding of opportunities in a stock

If you want to know who really controls Zhejiang FORE Intelligent Technology Co.,Ltd (SZSE:301368), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are private companies with 54% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

As market cap fell to CN¥4.2b last week, private companies would have faced the highest losses than any other shareholder groups of the company.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Zhejiang FORE Intelligent TechnologyLtd, beginning with the chart below.

Check out our latest analysis for Zhejiang FORE Intelligent TechnologyLtd

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Zhejiang FORE Intelligent TechnologyLtd?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Zhejiang FORE Intelligent TechnologyLtd. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Zhejiang FORE Intelligent TechnologyLtd's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Zhejiang FORE Intelligent TechnologyLtd is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is Taizhou Huangyan Fore Electric Control Equipment Co., Ltd., with ownership of 37%. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 5.2% and 5.0%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. In addition, we found that Youli Wang, the CEO has 1.7% of the shares allocated to their name.

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.

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. As far as we can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar.

Insider Ownership Of Zhejiang FORE Intelligent TechnologyLtd

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.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in Zhejiang FORE Intelligent Technology Co.,Ltd. In their own names, insiders own CN¥161m worth of stock in the CN¥4.2b company. It is good to see some investment by insiders, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 29% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders.

Private Equity Ownership

With an ownership of 5.2%, private equity firms are in a position to play a role in shaping corporate strategy with a focus on value creation. Some might like this, because private equity are sometimes activists who hold management accountable. But other times, private equity is selling out, having taking the company public.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 54%, of the Zhejiang FORE Intelligent TechnologyLtd stock. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company.

Next Steps:

I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Case in point: We've spotted 4 warning signs for Zhejiang FORE Intelligent TechnologyLtd you should be aware of, and 3 of them are potentially serious.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this 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.