Mercurity Fintech Holding Inc.'s (NASDAQ:MFH) market cap rose US$45m last week; individual investors who hold 47% profited and so did insiders

Key Insights

• Significant control over Mercurity Fintech Holding by individual investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• 51% of the business is held by the top 5 shareholders
• 29% of Mercurity Fintech Holding is held by insiders

Every investor in Mercurity Fintech Holding Inc. (NASDAQ:MFH) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual investors with 47% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Individual investors gained the most after market cap touched US$184m last week, while insiders who own 29% also benefitted.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Mercurity Fintech Holding.

Check out our latest analysis for Mercurity Fintech Holding

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Mercurity Fintech Holding?

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.

Mercurity Fintech Holding already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. 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 Mercurity Fintech Holding's 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 Mercurity Fintech Holding. Apollo Multi Asset Management LLP is currently the company's largest shareholder with 23% of shares outstanding. With 8.6% and 7.6% of the shares outstanding respectively, Hanqi Li and Hong Mei Zhou are the second and third largest shareholders.

Our research also brought to light the fact that roughly 51% of the company is controlled by the top 5 shareholders suggesting that these owners wield significant influence on the business.

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 Mercurity Fintech Holding

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.

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.

It seems insiders own a significant proportion of Mercurity Fintech Holding Inc.. It has a market capitalization of just US$184m, and insiders have US$54m 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

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 47% stake in Mercurity Fintech Holding. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Next Steps:

I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. For example, we've discovered 3 warning signs for Mercurity Fintech Holding that you should be aware of before investing here.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

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.