China Communications Construction Company Limited's (HKG:1800) top owners are private companies with 60% stake, while 33% is held by individual investors

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by private companies in China Communications Construction indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• China Communications Construction Group (Ltd.) owns 59% of the company
• Analyst forecasts along with ownership data serve to give a strong idea about prospects for a business

To get a sense of who is truly in control of China Communications Construction Company Limited (HKG:1800), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. We can see that private companies own the lion's share in the company with 60% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Meanwhile, individual investors make up 33% of the company’s shareholders.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of China Communications Construction.

See our latest analysis for China Communications Construction

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About China Communications Construction?

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.

China Communications Construction already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see China Communications Construction's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

China Communications Construction is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is China Communications Construction Group (Ltd.) with 59% of shares outstanding. With such a huge stake in the ownership, we infer that they have significant control of the future of the company. China Securities Finance Corp, Asset Management Arm is the second largest shareholder owning 3.0% of common stock, and GF Fund Management Co., Ltd. holds about 0.7% of the company stock.

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 a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of China Communications Construction

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. 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 cannot confirm that board members are holding shares personally. It is rare to see such a low level of personal ownership, amongst the board (and it is possible that our data might be incomplete). Concerned investors should check here to see if insiders have been selling or buying.

General Public Ownership

With a 33% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over China Communications Construction. 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

We can see that Private Companies own 60%, of the shares on issue. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand China Communications Construction better, we need to consider many other factors. Like risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for China Communications Construction (of which 1 is a bit unpleasant!) you should know about.

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future.

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.