A look at the shareholders of Samsung SDS Co.,Ltd. (KRX:018260) can tell us which group is most powerful. Generally speaking, as a company grows, institutions will increase their ownership. Conversely, insiders often decrease their ownership over time. I generally like to see some degree of insider ownership, even if only a little. As Nassim Nicholas Taleb said, 'Don’t tell me what you think, tell me what you have in your portfolio.
Samsung SDSLtd has a market capitalization of ₩14t, so it's too big to fly under the radar. We'd expect to see both institutions and retail investors owning a portion of the company. In the chart below, we can see that institutions are noticeable on the share registry. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Samsung SDSLtd.
See our latest analysis for Samsung SDSLtd
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Samsung SDSLtd?
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.
Samsung SDSLtd 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 Samsung SDSLtd, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.
Hedge funds don't have many shares in Samsung SDSLtd. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is currently the largest shareholder, with 23% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 17% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 9.2% by the third-largest shareholder.
On looking further, we found that 55% of the shares are owned by the top 4 shareholders. In other words, these shareholders have a meaningful say in the decisions of 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. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.
Insider Ownership Of Samsung SDSLtd
The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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 most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Samsung SDS Co.,Ltd.. It has a market capitalization of just ₩14t, and insiders have ₩2.3t worth of shares in their own names. That's quite significant. It is good to see this level of investment. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.
General Public Ownership
The general public holds a 29% stake in Samsung SDSLtd. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.
Public Company Ownership
We can see that public companies hold 40% of the Samsung SDSLtd shares on issue. It's hard to say for sure but this suggests they have entwined business interests. This might be a strategic stake, so it's worth watching this space for changes in ownership.
Next Steps:
While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Take risks for example - Samsung SDSLtd has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.
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. 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.
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About KOSE:A018260
Samsung SDSLtd
Provides various software solutions and IT services in South Korea and internationally.
Very undervalued with flawless balance sheet.