Key Insights

• Significant control over Shandong Sunpaper by private companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• The top 2 shareholders own 51% of the company
• 12% of Shandong Sunpaper is held by Institutions

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Shandong Sunpaper Co., Ltd. (SZSE:002078), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. We can see that private companies own the lion's share in the company with 45% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And individual investors on the other hand have a 36% ownership in the company.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Shandong Sunpaper.

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Shandong Sunpaper?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Shandong Sunpaper. 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. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Shandong Sunpaper's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Shandong Sunpaper. Our data shows that Shandong Sun Holding Group Co., Ltd. is the largest shareholder with 45% of shares outstanding. National Council for Social Security Fund is the second largest shareholder owning 6.1% of common stock, and Zhongtai Securities (Shanghai) Asset Management Co.,Ltd. holds about 1.4% of the company stock.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 2 shareholders have a majority ownership in the company, meaning that they are powerful enough to influence the decisions of the company.

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

Insider Ownership Of Shandong Sunpaper

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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.

We can see that insiders own shares in Shandong Sunpaper Co., Ltd.. The insiders have a meaningful stake worth CN¥393m. Most would see this as a real positive. It is good to see this level of investment by insiders. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 36% stake in Shandong Sunpaper. 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

We can see that Private Companies own 45%, 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 Shandong Sunpaper better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Shandong Sunpaper 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com