Public companies in Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai) Co.,Ltd (SHSE:688479) are its biggest bettors, and their bets paid off as stock gained 17% last week

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by public companies in Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• Yonyou Network Technology Co.,Ltd. owns 57% of the company
• Using data from company's past performance alongside ownership research, one can better assess the future performance of a company

Every investor in Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai) Co.,Ltd (SHSE:688479) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. With 57% stake, public companies possess the maximum shares in the company. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Clearly, public companies benefitted the most after the company's market cap rose by CN¥408m last week.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd.

Check out our latest analysis for Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd?

Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.

We can see that Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. 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 Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd. The company's largest shareholder is Yonyou Network Technology Co.,Ltd., with ownership of 57%. With such a huge stake in the ownership, we infer that they have significant control of the future of the company. Shanghai Yiyingyou Enterprise Management Center (Limited Partnership) is the second largest shareholder owning 4.1% of common stock, and Huzhou Youtong Investment Management Center (Limited Partnership) holds about 3.3% of the company stock. Additionally, the company's CEO Changhou Gui directly holds 1.8% of the total shares outstanding.

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. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known.

Insider Ownership Of Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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 most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai) Co.,Ltd. In their own names, insiders own CN¥53m worth of stock in the CN¥2.9b company. This shows at least some alignment. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 21% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd. 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 Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 11%, 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.

Public Company Ownership

We can see that public companies hold 57% of the Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd shares on issue. This may be a strategic interest and the two companies may have related business interests. It could be that they have de-merged. This holding is probably worth investigating further.

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 learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Yonyou Auto Information Technology (Shanghai)Ltd (including 1 which is significant) .

If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, backed by strong financial data.

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.