Key Insights

• Insiders appear to have a vested interest in Ribo Fashion Group's growth, as seen by their sizeable ownership
• 53% of the business is held by the top 5 shareholders
• Institutional ownership in Ribo Fashion Group is 13%

If you want to know who really controls Ribo Fashion Group Co., Ltd. (SHSE:603196), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual insiders with 46% ownership. 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 CN¥3.8b market cap following a 14% gain in the stock.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Ribo Fashion Group.

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Ribo Fashion Group?

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.

Ribo Fashion Group already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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 Ribo Fashion Group's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Ribo Fashion Group. Feng Liang is currently the company's largest shareholder with 25% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 8.8% and 7.3% of the stock. In addition, we found that Shengyu Wang, the CEO has 6.2% of the shares allocated to their name.

Our research also brought to light the fact that roughly 53% 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. 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 Ribo Fashion Group

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. 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.

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.

It seems insiders own a significant proportion of Ribo Fashion Group Co., Ltd.. Insiders have a CN¥1.8b stake in this CN¥3.8b business. 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

With a 29% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Ribo Fashion 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.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 11%, of the company's shares. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Ribo Fashion Group better, we need to consider many other factors. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for Ribo Fashion Group you should be aware of.

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.