With 40% ownership, ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE:ZTO) insiders have a lot riding on the company's future

Key Insights

• Significant insider control over ZTO Express (Cayman) implies vested interests in company growth
• A total of 5 investors have a majority stake in the company with 51% ownership
• Institutions own 30% of ZTO Express (Cayman)

If you want to know who really controls ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE:ZTO), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. We can see that individual insiders own the lion's share in the company with 40% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

So, insiders of ZTO Express (Cayman) have a lot at stake and every decision they make on the company’s future is important to them from a financial point of view.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about ZTO Express (Cayman).

See our latest analysis for ZTO Express (Cayman)

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About ZTO Express (Cayman)?

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.

We can see that ZTO Express (Cayman) does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at ZTO Express (Cayman)'s earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in ZTO Express (Cayman). The company's CEO Meisong Lai is the largest shareholder with 26% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 8.4% and 8.1% of the stock.

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 studying institutional ownership for a company can add value to your research, it is also a good practice to research analyst recommendations to get a deeper understand of a stock's expected performance. 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 ZTO Express (Cayman)

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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 information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.. It has a market capitalization of just US$15b, and insiders have US$6.0b worth of shares in their own names. That's quite significant. Most would be pleased to see the board is investing alongside them. You may wish to access this free chart showing recent trading by insiders.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 21% stake in ZTO Express (Cayman). 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

We can see that public companies hold 8.4% of the ZTO Express (Cayman) shares on issue. 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 ZTO Express (Cayman) better, we need to consider many other factors.

I like to dive deeper into how a company has performed in the past. You can access this interactive graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow, for free.

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future.

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.