Wan Hai Lines Ltd.'s (TWSE:2615) top owners are individual investors with 44% stake, while 43% is held by private companies

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by individual investors in Wan Hai Lines indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• 51% of the business is held by the top 12 shareholders
• Institutional ownership in Wan Hai Lines is 11%

A look at the shareholders of Wan Hai Lines Ltd. (TWSE:2615) can tell us which group is most powerful. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual investors with 44% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And private companies on the other hand have a 43% ownership in the company.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Wan Hai Lines.

View our latest analysis for Wan Hai Lines

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Wan Hai Lines?

Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Wan Hai Lines. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Wan Hai Lines, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Wan Hai Lines is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that Yi Chun Navigation Inc. is the largest shareholder with 13% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 8.0% and 7.7%, of the shares outstanding, respectively.

A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 12 shareholders have a combined ownership of 51% implying that no single shareholder has a majority.

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of Wan Hai Lines

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.

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 some shares in Wan Hai Lines Ltd.. The insiders have a meaningful stake worth NT$3.7b. Most would see this as a real positive. If you would like to explore the question of insider alignment, you can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 44% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 43%, of the company's shares. 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.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Wan Hai Lines better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should learn about the 4 warning signs we've spotted with Wan Hai Lines (including 3 which are significant) .

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.