Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by retail investors in China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• The top 5 shareholders own 50% of the company
• 10% of China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd is held by Institutions

If you want to know who really controls China Coal Xinji Energy Co.,Ltd (SHSE:601918), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 45% to be precise, is retail investors. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Meanwhile, private companies make up 44% of the company's shareholders.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd.

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd?

Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices.

China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. 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 China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd'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 China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd. The company's largest shareholder is China National Coal Group Co., Ltd, with ownership of 30%. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 7.6% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 5.8% by the third-largest shareholder.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 5 shareholders control more than half of the company which implies that this group has considerable sway over the company's decision-making.

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 China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd

The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. 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.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of China Coal Xinji Energy Co.,Ltd. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. It is a pretty big company, so it would be possible for board members to own a meaningful interest in the company, without owning much of a proportional interest. In this case, they own around CN¥17k worth of shares (at current prices). Arguably, recent buying and selling is just as important to consider. You can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 45% stake in China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 44%, of the China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd 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:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for China Coal Xinji EnergyLtd that you should be aware of.

If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
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.