Public companies are Episil-Precision Inc.'s (TWSE:3016) biggest owners and were rewarded after market cap rose by NT$1.4b last week

Key Insights

• Episil-Precision's significant public companies ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• 58% of the company is held by a single shareholder (Episil Technologies Inc.)
• Using data from company's past performance alongside ownership research, one can better assess the future performance of a company

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Episil-Precision Inc. (TWSE:3016), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 61% to be precise, is public companies. 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$1.4b last week.

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

Check out our latest analysis for Episil-Precision

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Episil-Precision?

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.

Since institutions own only a small portion of Episil-Precision, many may not have spent much time considering the stock. But it's clear that some have; and they liked it enough to buy in. So if the company itself can improve over time, we may well see more institutional buyers in the future. We sometimes see a rising share price when a few big institutions want to buy a certain stock at the same time. The history of earnings and revenue, which you can see below, could be helpful in considering if more institutional investors will want the stock. Of course, there are plenty of other factors to consider, too.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Episil-Precision. The company's largest shareholder is Episil Technologies Inc., with ownership of 58%. With such a huge stake in the ownership, we infer that they have significant control of the future of the company. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 3.4% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 2.9% by the third-largest shareholder. Wen-Guei Ye, who is the third-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Member of the Board of Directors.

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. As far as we can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar.

Insider Ownership Of Episil-Precision

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.

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.

Shareholders would probably be interested to learn that insiders own shares in Episil-Precision Inc.. It has a market capitalization of just NT$15b, and insiders have NT$751m worth of shares, in their own names. It is good to see some investment by insiders, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 31% stake in Episil-Precision. 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.

Public Company Ownership

Public companies currently own 61% of Episil-Precision stock. 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:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Episil-Precision better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for Episil-Precision (1 is significant) 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.