Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by retail investors in Shanghai Emperor of Cleaning Hi-Tech indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• 50% of the business is held by the top 9 shareholders
• Insiders own 43% of Shanghai Emperor of Cleaning Hi-Tech

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Shanghai Emperor of Cleaning Hi-Tech Co., Ltd (SHSE:603200), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. We can see that retail investors own the lion's share in the company with 48% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

While retail investors were the group that reaped the most benefits after last week's 11% price gain, insiders also received a 43% cut.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Shanghai Emperor of Cleaning Hi-Tech.

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Shanghai Emperor of Cleaning Hi-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.

Shanghai Emperor of Cleaning Hi-Tech 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 Shanghai Emperor of Cleaning Hi-Tech's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Shanghai Emperor of Cleaning Hi-Tech. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is the CEO Wei Wang with 41% of shares outstanding. The second and third largest shareholders are Shanghai Tiancheng Investment Management Co., Ltd. and Zhejiang Invest Equity Investment & Management Co., Ltd., with an equal amount of shares to their name at 2.0%.

On further inspection, we found that more than half the company's shares are owned by the top 9 shareholders, suggesting that the interests of the larger shareholders are balanced out to an extent by the smaller ones.

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. There is some analyst coverage of the stock, but it could still become more well known, with time.

Insider Ownership Of Shanghai Emperor of Cleaning Hi-Tech

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.

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 information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Shanghai Emperor of Cleaning Hi-Tech Co., Ltd. Insiders have a CN¥1.8b stake in this CN¥4.3b 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

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 48% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. 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.

Next Steps:

I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too.

I like to dive deeper into how a company has performed in the past. You can access this interactive graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow, for free.

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its 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.