Ace Pillar Co., Ltd.'s (TWSE:8374) biggest owners are public companies who got richer after stock soared 16% last week

Key Insights

• Ace Pillar's significant public companies ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• The top 2 shareholders own 57% of the company
• Insiders own 12% of Ace Pillar

A look at the shareholders of Ace Pillar Co., Ltd. (TWSE:8374) can tell us which group is most powerful. With 48% stake, public companies possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Clearly, public companies benefitted the most after the company's market cap rose by NT$2.2b last week.

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

Check out our latest analysis for Ace Pillar

What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Ace Pillar?

We don't tend to see institutional investors holding stock of companies that are very risky, thinly traded, or very small. Though we do sometimes see large companies without institutions on the register, it's not particularly common.

There could be various reasons why no institutions own shares in a company. Typically, small, newly listed companies don't attract much attention from fund managers, because it would not be possible for large fund managers to build a meaningful position in the company. Alternatively, there might be something about the company that has kept institutional investors away. Institutional investors may not find the historic growth of the business impressive, or there might be other factors at play. You can see the past revenue performance of Ace Pillar, for yourself, below.

Ace Pillar is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is DFI Inc. with 48% of shares outstanding. Ching-Chung Kwong is the second largest shareholder owning 9.1% of common stock, and Chief Investment Co., Ltd holds about 6.5% of the company stock.

After doing some more digging, we found that the top 2 shareholders collectively control more than half of the company's shares, implying that they have considerable power to influence the company's decisions.

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. 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 Ace Pillar

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 most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Ace Pillar Co., Ltd.. Insiders have a NT$1.9b stake in this NT$16b 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 28% stake in Ace Pillar. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 13%, of the Ace Pillar stock. 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.

Public Company Ownership

It appears to us that public companies own 48% of Ace Pillar. 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. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Ace Pillar that you should be aware of.

If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, backed by strong financial data.

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.