Prenetics Global Limited's (NASDAQ:PRE) 11% gain last week benefited both individual investors who own 45% as well as insiders

Key Insights

• Significant control over Prenetics Global by individual investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• 52% of the business is held by the top 9 shareholders
• Insider ownership in Prenetics Global is 36%

If you want to know who really controls Prenetics Global Limited (NASDAQ:PRE), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 45% stake, individual investors possess the maximum shares in the company. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Following a 11% increase in the stock price last week, individual investors profited the most, but insiders who own 36% stock also stood to gain from the increase.

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

View our latest analysis for Prenetics Global

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Prenetics Global?

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.

We can see that Prenetics Global does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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. 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 Prenetics Global, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Prenetics Global is not owned by hedge funds. With a 13% stake, CEO Sheng Wu Yeung is the largest shareholder. With 8.0% and 7.0% of the shares outstanding respectively, Dennis Lo and M & G Group Limited are the second and third largest shareholders.

On further inspection, we found that more than half the company's shares are owned by the top 9 shareholders, suggesting that the interests of the larger shareholders are balanced out to an extent by the smaller ones.

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. While there is some analyst coverage, the company is probably not widely covered. So it could gain more attention, down the track.

Insider Ownership Of Prenetics Global

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. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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 Prenetics Global Limited. It has a market capitalization of just US$973m, and insiders have US$354m worth of shares in their own names. 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

With a 45% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Prenetics Global. 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.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. To that end, you should learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Prenetics Global (including 1 which doesn't sit too well with us) .

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.