Retail investors who hold 59% of Kona I Co.,Ltd. (KOSDAQ:052400) gained 10%, insiders profited as well

Key Insights

• Significant control over Kona ILtd by retail investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• The top 13 shareholders own 41% of the company
• Insider ownership in Kona ILtd is 40%

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Kona I Co.,Ltd. (KOSDAQ:052400), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 59% to be precise, is retail investors. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

While retail investors were the group that benefitted the most from last week’s ₩40b market cap gain, insiders too had a 40% share in those profits.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Kona ILtd.

View our latest analysis for Kona ILtd

What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Kona ILtd?

Small companies that are not very actively traded often lack institutional investors, but it's less common to see large companies without them.

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. On the other hand, it's always possible that professional investors are avoiding a company because they don't think it's the best place for their money. Kona ILtd's earnings and revenue track record (below) may not be compelling to institutional investors -- or they simply might not have looked at the business closely.

Kona ILtd is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is the CEO Chung-Il Cho with 38% of shares outstanding. Namhui Cho is the second largest shareholder owning 2.3% of common stock, and Dimensional Fund Advisors LP holds about 0.4% of the company stock.

A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 13 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where no single shareholder has a majority.

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. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known.

Insider Ownership Of Kona ILtd

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.

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.

Our information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Kona I Co.,Ltd.. Insiders have a ₩170b stake in this ₩424b business. We would say this shows alignment with shareholders, but it is worth noting that the company is still quite small; some insiders may have founded the business. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a substantial 59% stake in Kona ILtd, suggesting it is a fairly popular stock. This size of ownership gives investors from the general public some collective power. They can and probably do influence decisions on executive compensation, dividend policies and proposed business acquisitions.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Kona ILtd better, we need to consider many other factors. Like risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Kona ILtd (of which 1 doesn't sit too well with us!) you should know about.

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.

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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.