Jia Yao Holdings Limited's (HKG:1626): Top Key Executive Yoong An Yang is the most bullish insider, and their stock value gained 11% last week

Key Insights

• Significant insider control over Jia Yao Holdings implies vested interests in company growth
• The largest shareholder of the company is Yoong An Yang with a 70% stake
• Ownership research, combined with past performance data can help provide a good understanding of opportunities in a stock

If you want to know who really controls Jia Yao Holdings Limited (HKG:1626), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual insiders with 70% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

As a result, insiders were the biggest beneficiaries of last week’s 11% gain.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Jia Yao Holdings.

View our latest analysis for Jia Yao Holdings

What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Jia Yao Holdings?

Small companies that are not very actively traded often lack institutional investors, but it's less common to see large companies without them.

There are many reasons why a company might not have any institutions on the share registry. It may be hard for institutions to buy large amounts of shares, if liquidity (the amount of shares traded each day) is low. If the company has not needed to raise capital, institutions might lack the opportunity to build a position. It is also possible that fund managers don't own the stock because they aren't convinced it will perform well. Jia Yao Holdings might not have the sort of past performance institutions are looking for, or perhaps they simply have not studied the business closely.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Jia Yao Holdings. Because actions speak louder than words, we consider it a good sign when insiders own a significant stake in a company. In Jia Yao Holdings' case, its Top Key Executive, Yoong An Yang, is the largest shareholder, holding 70% of shares outstanding. With an ownership of 0.1%, the second largest shareholder is Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

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. We're not picking up on any analyst coverage of the stock at the moment, so the company is unlikely to be widely held.

Insider Ownership Of Jia Yao Holdings

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.

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.

It seems that insiders own more than half the Jia Yao Holdings Limited stock. This gives them a lot of power. So they have a HK$712m stake in this HK$1.0b business. Most would argue this is a positive, showing strong alignment with shareholders. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 30% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. 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.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with Jia Yao Holdings , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

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.