Prestige BioPharma Limited's (KRX:950210) biggest owners are private companies who got richer after stock soared 22% last week

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by private companies in Prestige BioPharma indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• 53% of the business is held by the top 3 shareholders
• Insider ownership in Prestige BioPharma is 30%

A look at the shareholders of Prestige BioPharma Limited (KRX:950210) can tell us which group is most powerful. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are private companies with 38% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

As a result, private companies were the biggest beneficiaries of last week’s 22% gain.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Prestige BioPharma, beginning with the chart below.

View our latest analysis for Prestige BioPharma

What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Prestige BioPharma?

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. Alternatively, there might be something about the company that has kept institutional investors away. Prestige BioPharma might not have the sort of past performance institutions are looking for, or perhaps they simply have not studied the business closely.

Prestige BioPharma is not owned by hedge funds. Mayson Partners Pte. Ltd. is currently the company's largest shareholder with 22% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 16% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 15% by the third-largest shareholder. So-Yeon Park, who is the third-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Chairman of the Board.

After doing some more digging, we found that the top 3 shareholders collectively control more than half of the company's shares, implying that they have considerable power to influence the company's decisions.

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. We're not picking up on any analyst coverage of the stock at the moment, so the company is unlikely to be widely held.

Insider Ownership Of Prestige BioPharma

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.

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 information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Prestige BioPharma Limited. Insiders own ₩59b worth of shares in the ₩196b company. It is great to see insiders so invested in the business. It might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

With a 32% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Prestige BioPharma. 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

We can see that Private Companies own 38%, of the shares on issue. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.

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. Case in point: We've spotted 4 warning signs for Prestige BioPharma you should be aware of, and 2 of them are significant.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

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.