To get a sense of who is truly in control of China Boton Group Company Limited (HKG:3318), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. With 35% stake, individual insiders 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).
As a result, insiders scored the highest last week as the company hit HK$2.3b market cap following a 17% gain in the stock.
Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of China Boton Group, beginning with the chart below.
Check out our latest analysis for China Boton Group
Institutional investors often avoid companies that are too small, too illiquid or too risky for their tastes. But it's unusual to see larger companies without any institutional investors.
There could be various reasons why no institutions own shares in a company. Typically, small, newly listed companies don't attract much attention from fund managers, because it would not be possible for large fund managers to build a meaningful position in the company. It is also possible that fund managers don't own the stock because they aren't convinced it will perform well. China Boton Group's earnings and revenue track record (below) may not be compelling to institutional investors -- or they simply might not have looked at the business closely.
Hedge funds don't have many shares in China Boton Group. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is the CEO Ming Fan Wang with 35% of shares outstanding. With 32% and 0.2% of the shares outstanding respectively, Creative China Ltd and Ying Chun Yang are the second and third largest shareholders.
A more detailed study of the shareholder registry showed us that 2 of the top shareholders have a considerable amount of ownership in the company, via their 68% stake.
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. As far as we can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar.
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 most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of China Boton Group Company Limited. Insiders have a HK$801m stake in this HK$2.3b business. 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.
The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 32% stake in China Boton Group. 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.
Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 32%, of the company's shares. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company.
It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand China Boton Group better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 2 warning signs with China Boton Group , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
Of course this may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free 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.