United Energy Group Limited's (HKG:467) 6.5% gain last week benefited both retail investors who own 54% as well as insiders

Key Insights

• United Energy Group's significant retail investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• The top 25 shareholders own 46% of the company
• Recent sales by insiders

Every investor in United Energy Group Limited (HKG:467) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. We can see that retail investors own the lion's share in the company with 54% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

Following a 6.5% increase in the stock price last week, retail investors profited the most, but insiders who own 44% stock also stood to gain from the increase.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of United Energy Group.

See our latest analysis for United Energy Group

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About United Energy Group?

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.

Institutions have a very small stake in United Energy Group. That indicates that the company is on the radar of some funds, but it isn't particularly popular with professional investors at the moment. If the business gets stronger from here, we could see a situation where more institutions are keen to buy. We sometimes see a rising share price when a few big institutions want to buy a certain stock at the same time. The history of earnings and revenue, which you can see below, could be helpful in considering if more institutional investors will want the stock. Of course, there are plenty of other factors to consider, too.

United Energy Group is not owned by hedge funds. Because actions speak louder than words, we consider it a good sign when insiders own a significant stake in a company. In United Energy Group's case, its Top Key Executive, Hongwei Zhang, is the largest shareholder, holding 42% of shares outstanding. With 1.9% and 1.0% of the shares outstanding respectively, Meiying Zhang and The Vanguard Group, Inc. are the second and third largest shareholders. Interestingly, the second-largest shareholder, Meiying Zhang is also Senior Key Executive, again, pointing towards strong insider ownership amongst the company's top shareholders.

Our studies suggest that the top 25 shareholders collectively control less than half of the company's shares, meaning that the company's shares are widely disseminated and there is no dominant shareholder.

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. There is some analyst coverage of the stock, but it could still become more well known, with time.

Insider Ownership Of United Energy Group

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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.

Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group.

Our information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in United Energy Group Limited. It is very interesting to see that insiders have a meaningful HK$4.6b stake in this HK$11b business. It is good to see this level of investment. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 54% of United Energy Group shares. 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.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand United Energy Group better, we need to consider many other factors. Be aware that United Energy Group is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis , 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.