Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Company Limited's (SHSE:600004) stock price dropped 9.7% last week; private companies would not be happy

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by private companies in Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• The largest shareholder of the company is Guangdong Airport Management Group Limited with a 57% stake
• Analyst forecasts along with ownership data serve to give a strong idea about prospects for a business

If you want to know who really controls Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Company Limited (SHSE:600004), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 57% to be precise, is private companies. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

As market cap fell to CN¥22b last week, private companies would have faced the highest losses than any other shareholder groups of the company.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, beginning with the chart below.

See our latest analysis for Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport?

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 Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. 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 Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that Guangdong Airport Management Group Limited is the largest shareholder with 57% of shares outstanding. This essentially means that they have extensive influence, if not outright control, over the future of the corporation. The second and third largest shareholders are Sinatay Life Insurance Co., Ltd., Investment Arm and abrdn plc, with an equal amount of shares to their name at 0.9%.

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 Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport

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.

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 data cannot confirm that board members are holding shares personally. It is unusual not to have at least some personal holdings by board members, so our data might be flawed. A good next step would be to check how much the CEO is paid.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 34% stake in Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport. 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 57%, 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:

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. Take risks for example - Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

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.