Key Insights

• Significant control over Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech by private companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• The top 5 shareholders own 55% of the company
• Institutional ownership in Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech is 22%

Every investor in Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech. Co., Ltd. (SHSE:688372) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 34% to be precise, is private companies. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

And following last week's 11% decline in share price, private companies suffered the most losses.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech.

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech?

Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.

We can see that Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech 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. 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 Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Shanghai Ruice Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd. with 31% of shares outstanding. The second and third largest shareholders are Shenzhen Cowin Asset Management Co.,Ltd. and Oriza Puhua (Suzhou) Investment Management Co., Ltd., with an equal amount of shares to their name at 6.1%.

On looking further, we found that 55% of the shares are owned by the top 5 shareholders. In other words, these shareholders have a meaningful say in the decisions of the company.

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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech

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. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves.

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 data cannot confirm that board members are holding shares personally. Given we are not picking up on insider ownership, we may have missing data. Therefore, it would be interesting to assess the CEO compensation and tenure, here.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 13% stake in Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.

Private Equity Ownership

With an ownership of 29%, private equity firms are in a position to play a role in shaping corporate strategy with a focus on value creation. Some investors might be encouraged by this, since private equity are sometimes able to encourage strategies that help the market see the value in the company. Alternatively, those holders might be exiting the investment after taking it public.

Private Company Ownership

We can see that Private Companies own 34%, of the shares on issue. 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 Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 4 warning signs for Shanghai V-Test Semiconductor Tech (2 shouldn't be ignored) that you should be aware of.

But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter 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.