Key Insights

• China Oil HBP Science & Technology's significant retail investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• A total of 23 investors have a majority stake in the company with 42% ownership
• Insider ownership in China Oil HBP Science & Technology is 11%

To get a sense of who is truly in control of China Oil HBP Science & Technology Co., Ltd (SZSE:002554), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 58% to be precise, is retail investors. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Clearly, retail investors benefitted the most after the company's market cap rose by CN¥416m last week.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of China Oil HBP Science & Technology, beginning with the chart below.

What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About China Oil HBP Science & Technology?

We don't tend to see institutional investors holding stock of companies that are very risky, thinly traded, or very small. Though we do sometimes see large companies without institutions on the register, it's not particularly common.

There are many reasons why a company might not have any institutions on the share registry. It may be hard for institutions to buy large amounts of shares, if liquidity (the amount of shares traded each day) is low. If the company has not needed to raise capital, institutions might lack the opportunity to build a position. On the other hand, it's always possible that professional investors are avoiding a company because they don't think it's the best place for their money. Institutional investors may not find the historic growth of the business impressive, or there might be other factors at play. You can see the past revenue performance of China Oil HBP Science & Technology, for yourself, below.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in China Oil HBP Science & Technology. Our data shows that Changsha Urbran Development Group Co.,Ltd. is the largest shareholder with 30% of shares outstanding. With 5.8% and 2.2% of the shares outstanding respectively, Song Huang and Mingken Bai are the second and third largest shareholders.

On studying our ownership data, we found that 23 of the top shareholders collectively own less than 50% of the share register, implying that no single individual has a majority interest.

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. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known.

Insider Ownership Of China Oil HBP Science & Technology

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.

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.

Our information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in China Oil HBP Science & Technology Co., Ltd. It has a market capitalization of just CN¥3.6b, and insiders have CN¥403m worth of shares in their own names. It is great to see insiders so invested in the business. It might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 58% of China Oil HBP Science & Technology shares. This level of ownership gives investors from the wider public some power to sway key policy decisions such as board composition, executive compensation, and the dividend payout ratio.

Private Company Ownership

We can see that Private Companies own 30%, of the shares on issue. 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.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand China Oil HBP Science & Technology better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with China Oil HBP Science & Technology , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, backed by strong financial data.

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.