Individual investors invested in Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology Co., Ltd. (SZSE:002590) copped the brunt of last week's CN¥452m market cap decline

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by individual investors in Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• A total of 5 investors have a majority stake in the company with 50% ownership
• Ownership research, combined with past performance data can help provide a good understanding of opportunities in a stock

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology Co., Ltd. (SZSE:002590), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. We can see that individual investors own the lion's share in the company with 44% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And following last week's 6.4% decline in share price, individual investors suffered the most losses.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology, beginning with the chart below.

Check out our latest analysis for Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology?

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.

Since institutions own only a small portion of Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology, many may not have spent much time considering the stock. But it's clear that some have; and they liked it enough to buy in. If the business gets stronger from here, we could see a situation where more institutions are keen to buy. 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.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Wanan Group with 42% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 4.6% and 1.4% of the stock. Feng Chen, who is the second-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Chief Executive Officer.

Our research also brought to light the fact that roughly 50% of the company is controlled by the top 5 shareholders suggesting that these owners wield significant influence on the business.

While studying institutional ownership for a company can add value to your research, it is also a good practice to research analyst recommendations to get a deeper understand of a stock's expected performance. We're not picking up on any analyst coverage of the stock at the moment, so the company is unlikely to be widely held.

Insider Ownership Of Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology

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.

Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology Co., Ltd.. In their own names, insiders own CN¥653m worth of stock in the CN¥6.6b 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 44% 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.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 43%, of the company's shares. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Zhejiang VIE Science & Technology better, we need to consider many other factors.

Many find it useful to take an in depth look at how a company has performed in the past. You can access this detailed graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

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.