Institutional investors are C.Uyemura & Co.,Ltd.'s (TSE:4966) biggest bettors and were rewarded after last week's JP¥11b market cap gain

Key Insights

• Significantly high institutional ownership implies C.UyemuraLtd's stock price is sensitive to their trading actions
• 52% of the business is held by the top 5 shareholders
• Past performance of a company 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 C.Uyemura & Co.,Ltd. (TSE:4966), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. We can see that institutions own the lion's share in the company with 37% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Last week’s 6.9% gain means that institutional investors were on the positive end of the spectrum even as the company has shown strong longer-term trends. The one-year return on investment is currently 18% and last week's gain would have been more than welcomed.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about C.UyemuraLtd.

View our latest analysis for C.UyemuraLtd

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About C.UyemuraLtd?

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.

C.UyemuraLtd already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. 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 C.UyemuraLtd's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

C.UyemuraLtd is not owned by hedge funds. Naniwa Shokusan Co., Ltd. is currently the largest shareholder, with 28% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 7.9% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 6.1% by the third-largest shareholder. Additionally, the company's CEO Hiroya Uemura directly holds 1.3% of the total shares outstanding.

Our research also brought to light the fact that roughly 52% of the company is controlled by the top 5 shareholders suggesting that these owners wield significant influence on the business.

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 C.UyemuraLtd

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves.

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 most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in C.Uyemura & Co.,Ltd.. The insiders have a meaningful stake worth JP¥8.7b. Most would see this as a real positive. Most would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. Still, it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 25% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over C.UyemuraLtd. 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

It seems that Private Companies own 28%, of the C.UyemuraLtd stock. 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:

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. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for C.UyemuraLtd you should be aware of.

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.