Retail investors account for 41% of Sanan Optoelectronics Co.,Ltd's (SHSE:600703) ownership, while private companies account for 32%

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by retail investors in Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• The top 10 shareholders own 51% of the company
• Institutional ownership in Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd is 22%

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Sanan Optoelectronics Co.,Ltd (SHSE:600703), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are retail investors with 41% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Private companies, on the other hand, account for 32% of the company's stockholders.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd, beginning with the chart below.

View our latest analysis for Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd. 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 Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd. Fujian San'an Group Co., Ltd. is currently the company's largest shareholder with 30% of shares outstanding. With 5.8% and 2.8% of the shares outstanding respectively, Changsha Pilot Industry Investment Co., Ltd. and Sanan Optoelectronics Co.,Ltd., ESOP are the second and third largest shareholders.

We also observed that the top 10 shareholders account for more than half of the share register, with a few smaller shareholders to balance the interests of the larger ones to a certain extent.

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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd

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 less than 1% of Sanan Optoelectronics Co.,Ltd. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. Being so large, we would not expect insiders to own a large proportion of the stock. Collectively, they own CN¥76m of stock. 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 41% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. 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

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 32%, 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:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Sanan OptoelectronicsLtd you should know about.

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.