SK Square Co., Ltd.'s (KRX:402340) large institutional owners must be happy as stock continues to impress, up 3.3% over the past week

Key Insights

• Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, SK Square's stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions
• 51% of the business is held by the top 4 shareholders
• 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 SK Square Co., Ltd. (KRX:402340), 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 institutions with 41% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And as as result, institutional investors reaped the most rewards after the company's stock price gained 3.3% last week. The one-year return on investment is currently 109% 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 SK Square.

Check out our latest analysis for SK Square

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About SK Square?

Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.

We can see that SK Square does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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 SK Square's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

SK Square is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is SK Corporation, with ownership of 32%. With 6.8% and 6.7% of the shares outstanding respectively, Macquarie Group, Ltd., Banking & Securities Investments and National Pension Service are the second and third largest shareholders.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 4 shareholders control more than half of the company which implies that this group has considerable sway over the company's decision-making.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of SK Square

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.

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.

Our data suggests that insiders own under 1% of SK Square Co., Ltd. in their own names. We do note, however, it is possible insiders have an indirect interest through a private company or other corporate structure. Being so large, we would not expect insiders to own a large proportion of the stock. Collectively, they own ₩6.2b of stock. It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

With a 27% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over SK Square. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 32%, of the company's shares. 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.

I always like to check for a history of revenue growth. You can too, by accessing this free chart of historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph.

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.