Pharos iBio Co., Ltd.'s (KOSDAQ:388870) 11% gain last week benefited both retail investors who own 50% as well as insiders

Key Insights

• Pharos iBio's significant retail investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• A total of 13 investors have a majority stake in the company with 50% ownership
• Insider ownership in Pharos iBio is 33%

A look at the shareholders of Pharos iBio Co., Ltd. (KOSDAQ:388870) can tell us which group is most powerful. We can see that retail investors own the lion's share in the company with 50% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Retail investors gained the most after market cap touched ₩142b last week, while insiders who own 33% also benefitted.

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

See our latest analysis for Pharos iBio

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Pharos iBio?

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.

We can see that Pharos iBio 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. 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 Pharos iBio, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Pharos iBio. Jeong-Hyeok Yoon is currently the largest shareholder, with 24% of shares outstanding. Kyyoub Nam is the second largest shareholder owning 4.9% of common stock, and Company K Partners Limited holds about 4.7% of the company stock.

After doing some more digging, we found that the top 13 have the combined ownership of 50% in the company, suggesting that no single shareholder has significant control over the company.

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known.

Insider Ownership Of Pharos iBio

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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 most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Pharos iBio Co., Ltd.. It has a market capitalization of just ₩142b, and insiders have ₩47b worth of shares in their own names. This may suggest that the founders still own a lot of shares. You can click here to see if they have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 50% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Pharos iBio. 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.

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 example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Pharos iBio (1 is a bit concerning!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, backed by strong financial data.

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.