Individual investors invested in Yantai Shuangta Food Co., Ltd. (SZSE:002481) copped the brunt of last week's CN¥728m market cap decline

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by individual investors in Yantai Shuangta Food indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• The top 25 shareholders own 50% of the company
• Insiders own 12% of Yantai Shuangta Food

A look at the shareholders of Yantai Shuangta Food Co., Ltd. (SZSE:002481) can tell us which group is most powerful. We can see that individual investors own the lion's share in the company with 50% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

And following last week's 10% decline in share price, individual investors suffered the most losses.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Yantai Shuangta Food.

See our latest analysis for Yantai Shuangta Food

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Yantai Shuangta Food?

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.

Less than 5% of Yantai Shuangta Food is held by institutional investors. This suggests that some funds have the company in their sights, but many have not yet bought shares in it. If the company is growing earnings, that may indicate that it is just beginning to catch the attention of these deep-pocketed investors. When multiple institutional investors want to buy shares, we often see a rising share price. The past revenue trajectory (shown below) can be an indication of future growth, but there are no guarantees.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Yantai Shuangta Food. The company's largest shareholder is Zhaoyuan Junxing Investment Management Center, with ownership of 33%. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 12% and 3.4% of the stock.

A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 25 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where no single shareholder has a majority.

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 Yantai Shuangta Food

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. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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 information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Yantai Shuangta Food Co., Ltd.. Insiders own CN¥787m worth of shares in the CN¥6.3b company. This may suggest that the founders still own a lot of shares. You can click here to see if they have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public -- including retail investors -- own 50% of Yantai Shuangta Food. This size of ownership gives investors from the general public some collective power. They can and probably do influence decisions on executive compensation, dividend policies and proposed business acquisitions.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 33%, of the Yantai Shuangta Food stock. 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 Yantai Shuangta Food better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks for example - Yantai Shuangta Food has 3 warning signs (and 1 which doesn't sit too well with us) we think you should know about.

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.