Key Insights

• Insiders appear to have a vested interest in Shanghai Yanpu Metal ProductsLtd's growth, as seen by their sizeable ownership
• 52% of the business is held by the top 3 shareholders
• 13% of Shanghai Yanpu Metal ProductsLtd is held by Institutions

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Shanghai Yanpu Metal Products Co.,Ltd (SHSE:605128), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. With 57% stake, individual insiders possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

As a result, insiders were the biggest beneficiaries of last week's 10% gain.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Shanghai Yanpu Metal ProductsLtd.

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Shanghai Yanpu Metal ProductsLtd?

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.

We can see that Shanghai Yanpu Metal ProductsLtd 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. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Shanghai Yanpu Metal ProductsLtd, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Shanghai Yanpu Metal ProductsLtd. Our data suggests that Jianqing Zhou, who is also the company's Top Key Executive, holds the most number of shares at 38%. When an insider holds a sizeable amount of a company's stock, investors consider it as a positive sign because it suggests that insiders are willing to have their wealth tied up in the future of the company. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 9.5% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 4.4% by the third-largest shareholder. Interestingly, the third-largest shareholder, Yong Qian is also a Member of the Board of Directors, again, indicating strong insider ownership amongst the company's top shareholders.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 3 shareholders have a majority ownership in the company, meaning that they are powerful enough to influence the decisions of the company.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Shanghai Yanpu Metal ProductsLtd

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.

Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group.

It seems that insiders own more than half the Shanghai Yanpu Metal Products Co.,Ltd stock. This gives them a lot of power. So they have a CN¥2.6b stake in this CN¥4.5b business. Most would be pleased to see the board is investing alongside them. You may wish todiscover (for free) if they have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 29% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Shanghai Yanpu Metal ProductsLtd. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for Shanghai Yanpu Metal ProductsLtd you should be aware of.

Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

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.