Retail investors account for 45% of Shanghai Construction Group Co., Ltd.'s (SHSE:600170) ownership, while private companies account for 30%

Key Insights

• Significant control over Shanghai Construction Group by retail investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• 50% of the business is held by the top 5 shareholders
• Analyst forecasts along with ownership data serve to give a strong idea about prospects for a business

Every investor in Shanghai Construction Group Co., Ltd. (SHSE:600170) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are retail investors with 45% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And private companies on the other hand have a 30% ownership in the company.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Shanghai Construction Group.

See our latest analysis for Shanghai Construction Group

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Shanghai Construction Group?

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.

We can see that Shanghai Construction Group does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Shanghai Construction Group, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Shanghai Construction Group is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is Shanghai Construction (Group) General Corporation, with ownership of 30%. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 15% and 2.6% of the stock.

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.

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. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of Shanghai Construction Group

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.

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 data suggests that insiders own under 1% of Shanghai Construction Group Co., Ltd. in their own names. 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¥13m worth of shares (at current prices). It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 45% 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

Private equity firms hold a 15% stake in Shanghai Construction Group. This suggests they can be influential in key policy decisions. 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

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 30%, of the company's shares. 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:

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. To that end, you should be aware of the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Shanghai Construction Group .

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.

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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.