Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket Company Limited's (HKG:2625) market cap up HK$141m last week, benefiting both retail investors who own 49% as well as insiders

Key Insights

• Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket's significant retail investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• A total of 7 investors have a majority stake in the company with 50% ownership
• Insider ownership in Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket is 35%

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If you want to know who really controls Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket Company Limited (HKG:2625), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 49% stake, retail investors possess the maximum shares in the company. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

While retail investors were the group that reaped the most benefits after last week’s 14% price gain, insiders also received a 35% cut.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket, beginning with the chart below.

Check out our latest analysis for Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket?

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 Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. 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 Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket. Our data suggests that Feng Gao, who is also the company's Top Key Executive, holds the most number of shares at 20%. 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. With 9.1% and 7.0% of the shares outstanding respectively, Jiangsu Jiequan Supply and Marketing Cooperative Industrial Development Fund (Limited Partnership) and Yangzhou Jiangdu District Major Projects Special Investment Fund Co., Ltd. are the second and third largest shareholders. Furthermore, CEO Jiaan Zhang is the owner of 3.3% of the company's shares.

We did some more digging and found that 7 of the top shareholders account for roughly 50% of the register, implying that along with larger shareholders, there are a few smaller shareholders, thereby balancing out each others interests somewhat.

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 Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket

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.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket Company Limited. It has a market capitalization of just HK$1.2b, and insiders have HK$410m worth of shares in their own names. This may suggest that the founders still own a lot of shares. You can click here to see if they have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 49% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 9.1%, 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:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Take risks for example - Jiangsu Horizon Chain Supermarket has 2 warning signs we think 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.