LS Eco Energy Ltd.'s (KRX:229640) biggest owners are public companies who got richer after stock soared 9.1% last week

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by public companies in LS Eco Energy indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• The largest shareholder of the company is LS Corp. with a 64% stake
• Using data from analyst forecasts alongside ownership research, one can better assess the future performance of a company

If you want to know who really controls LS Eco Energy Ltd. (KRX:229640), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 64% stake, public companies possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

As a result, public companies were the biggest beneficiaries of last week’s 9.1% gain.

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

View our latest analysis for LS Eco Energy

What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About LS Eco Energy?

Institutional investors often avoid companies that are too small, too illiquid or too risky for their tastes. But it's unusual to see larger companies without any institutional investors.

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. LS Eco Energy's earnings and revenue track record (below) may not be compelling to institutional investors -- or they simply might not have looked at the business closely.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in LS Eco Energy. LS Corp. is currently the largest shareholder, with 64% of shares outstanding. With such a huge stake in the ownership, we infer that they have significant control of the future of the company. With 3.1% and 0.9% of the shares outstanding respectively, Ja-Yeol Koo and Ja-Yong Koo are the second and third largest shareholders.

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 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 LS Eco Energy

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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.

We can report that insiders do own shares in LS Eco Energy Ltd.. In their own names, insiders own ₩56b worth of stock in the ₩873b company. It is good to see some investment by insiders, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 29% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Public Company Ownership

Public companies currently own 64% of LS Eco Energy stock. It's hard to say for sure but this suggests they have entwined business interests. This might be a strategic stake, so it's worth watching this space for changes in ownership.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand LS Eco Energy better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with LS Eco Energy , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.