Daesang Corporation's (KRX:001680) last week's 7.8% decline must have disappointed public companies who have a significant stake

Key Insights

• Daesang's significant public companies ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• A total of 3 investors have a majority stake in the company with 53% ownership
• Institutions own 29% of Daesang

If you want to know who really controls Daesang Corporation (KRX:001680), 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 public companies with 38% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

And last week, public companies endured the biggest losses as the stock fell by 7.8%.

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

View our latest analysis for Daesang

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Daesang?

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.

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

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Daesang. The company's largest shareholder is Daesang Holdings Co., Ltd., with ownership of 38%. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 10% and 4.8% of the stock.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 3 shareholders have a majority ownership in the company, meaning that they are powerful enough to influence the decisions of the company.

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. While there is some analyst coverage, the company is probably not widely covered. So it could gain more attention, down the track.

Insider Ownership Of Daesang

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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.

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.

Our data suggests that insiders own under 1% of Daesang Corporation in their own names. It appears that the board holds about ₩5.4b worth of stock. This compares to a market capitalization of ₩908b. Many tend to prefer to see a board with bigger shareholdings. A good next step might be to take a look at this free summary of insider buying and selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 33% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.

Public Company Ownership

Public companies currently own 38% of Daesang stock. We can't be certain but it is quite possible this is a strategic stake. The businesses may be similar, or work together.

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 risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Daesang you should know about.

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.

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