Individual investors invested in Wysiwyg Studios Co., Ltd. (KOSDAQ:299900) copped the brunt of last week's ₩82b market cap decline

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by individual investors in Wysiwyg Studios indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• 50% of the business is held by the top 4 shareholders
• Past performance of a company along with ownership data serve to give a strong idea about prospects for a business

Every investor in Wysiwyg Studios Co., Ltd. (KOSDAQ:299900) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. With 46% stake, individual investors possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

As market cap fell to ₩352b last week, individual investors would have faced the highest losses than any other shareholder groups of the company.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Wysiwyg Studios.

Check out our latest analysis for Wysiwyg Studios

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Wysiwyg Studios?

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.

Wysiwyg Studios 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. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Wysiwyg Studios, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Wysiwyg Studios is not owned by hedge funds. Com2uS Corporation is currently the largest shareholder, with 38% of shares outstanding. The second and third largest shareholders are Kwan-woo Park and In-Gyu Park, with an equal amount of shares to their name at 4.9%. Kwan-woo Park, who is the second-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Co-Chief Executive Officer.

Our research also brought to light the fact that roughly 50% of the company is controlled by the top 4 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 Wysiwyg Studios

The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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.

Shareholders would probably be interested to learn that insiders own shares in Wysiwyg Studios Co., Ltd.. In their own names, insiders own ₩35b worth of stock in the ₩352b company. Some would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. But it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 46% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Wysiwyg Studios. 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.

Public Company Ownership

We can see that public companies hold 38% of the Wysiwyg Studios shares on issue. This may be a strategic interest and the two companies may have related business interests. It could be that they have de-merged. This holding is probably worth investigating further.

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. For instance, we've identified 3 warning signs for Wysiwyg Studios (2 are concerning) that 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.