ROBOTIS Co., Ltd.'s (KOSDAQ:108490) 15% gain last week benefited both individual investors who own 59% as well as insiders

Key Insights

• Significant control over ROBOTIS by individual investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• 41% of the business is held by the top 11 shareholders
• 32% of ROBOTIS is held by insiders

A look at the shareholders of ROBOTIS Co., Ltd. (KOSDAQ:108490) can tell us which group is most powerful. With 59% stake, individual investors possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Individual investors gained the most after market cap touched ₩277b last week, while insiders who own 32% also benefitted.

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

Check out our latest analysis for ROBOTIS

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About ROBOTIS?

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.

Institutions have a very small stake in ROBOTIS. That indicates that the company is on the radar of some funds, but it isn't particularly popular with professional investors at the moment. So if the company itself can improve over time, we may well see more institutional buyers in the future. When multiple institutional investors want to buy shares, we often see a rising share price. The past revenue trajectory (shown below) can be an indication of future growth, but there are no guarantees.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in ROBOTIS. The company's largest shareholder is Byeong-Su Kim, with ownership of 27%. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 7.5% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 4.2% by the third-largest shareholder.

Our studies suggest that the top 11 shareholders collectively control less than half of the company's shares, meaning that the company's shares are widely disseminated and there is no dominant shareholder.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. There is a little analyst coverage of the stock, but not much. So there is room for it to gain more coverage.

Insider Ownership Of ROBOTIS

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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.

It seems insiders own a significant proportion of ROBOTIS Co., Ltd.. Insiders own ₩87b worth of shares in the ₩277b company. 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, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 59% of ROBOTIS shares. With this amount of ownership, retail investors can collectively play a role in decisions that affect shareholder returns, such as dividend policies and the appointment of directors. They can also exercise the power to vote on acquisitions or mergers that may not improve profitability.

Public Company Ownership

We can see that public companies hold 7.5% of the ROBOTIS shares on issue. We can't be certain but it is quite possible this is a strategic stake. The businesses may be similar, or work together.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for ROBOTIS 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.