Insiders were the biggest winners as LS Corp.'s (KRX:006260) market cap grew by ₩319b last week

Key Insights

• LS' significant insider ownership suggests inherent interests in company's expansion
• A total of 3 investors have a majority stake in the company with 50% ownership
• Institutions own 28% of LS

A look at the shareholders of LS Corp. (KRX:006260) can tell us which group is most powerful. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual insiders with 37% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

As a result, insiders scored the highest last week as the company hit ₩3.8t market cap following a 9.2% gain in the stock.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of LS, beginning with the chart below.

View our latest analysis for LS

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About LS?

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.

LS 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. 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 LS' earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in LS. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Ja-Yeol Koo with 30% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 16% and 4.3% of the stock. Ja-Eun Koo, who is the third-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Unit Chairman.

A more detailed study of the shareholder registry showed us that 3 of the top shareholders have a considerable amount of ownership in the company, via their 50% stake.

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 are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of LS

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.

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.

It seems insiders own a significant proportion of LS Corp.. It is very interesting to see that insiders have a meaningful ₩1.4t stake in this ₩3.8t business. Most would say this shows a good degree of alignment with shareholders, especially in a company of this size. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 35% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over LS. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand LS better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should learn about the 4 warning signs we've spotted with LS (including 1 which makes us a bit uncomfortable) .

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.