While individual investors own 34% of Hongkong Land Holdings Limited (SGX:H78), private companies are its largest shareholders with 53% ownership

Key Insights

• Hongkong Land Holdings' significant private companies ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• Jardine Strategic Limited owns 53% of the company
• Institutional ownership in Hongkong Land Holdings is 13%

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Hongkong Land Holdings Limited (SGX:H78), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. With 53% stake, private companies possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

And individual investors on the other hand have a 34% ownership in the company.

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

Check out our latest analysis for Hongkong Land Holdings

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Hongkong Land Holdings?

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.

Hongkong Land Holdings already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Hongkong Land Holdings' historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Hongkong Land Holdings. The company's largest shareholder is Jardine Strategic Limited, with ownership of 53%. This implies that they have majority interest control of the future of the company. First Eagle Investment Management, LLC is the second largest shareholder owning 2.7% of common stock, and The Vanguard Group, Inc. holds about 2.2% of the company stock.

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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Hongkong Land Holdings

The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. 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 less than 1% of Hongkong Land Holdings Limited. However, it's possible that insiders might have an indirect interest through a more complex structure. It's a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own US$6.3m worth of shares. It is always good to see at least some insider ownership, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 34% stake in Hongkong Land Holdings. 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.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 53%, of the company's shares. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Hongkong Land Holdings better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Hongkong Land Holdings .

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. 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.