Key Insights

• Anhui Conch Cement's significant retail investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• The top 12 shareholders own 50% of the company
• 22% of Anhui Conch Cement is held by Institutions

Every investor in Anhui Conch Cement Company Limited (HKG:914) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are retail investors with 39% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

And last week, retail investors endured the biggest losses as the stock fell by 3.5%.

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

Check out our latest analysis for Anhui Conch Cement

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Anhui Conch Cement?

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 Anhui Conch Cement. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. 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 Anhui Conch Cement, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Anhui Conch Cement. Anhui Conch Group Co., Ltd is currently the largest shareholder, with 37% of shares outstanding. China Securities Finance Corp, Asset Management Arm is the second largest shareholder owning 3.0% of common stock, and TCC Group Holdings Co., Ltd. holds about 2.2% of the company stock.

Looking at the shareholder registry, we can see that 50% of the ownership is controlled by the top 12 shareholders, meaning that no single shareholder has a majority interest in the ownership.

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 are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of Anhui Conch Cement

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

Our data suggests that insiders own under 1% of Anhui Conch Cement Company Limited in their own names. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. It is a very large company, so it would be surprising to see insiders own a large proportion of the company. Though their holding amounts to less than 1%, we can see that board members collectively own HK$1.5m worth of shares (at current prices). It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 39% stake in Anhui Conch Cement. 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

It seems that Private Companies own 37%, of the Anhui Conch Cement stock. 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 Anhui Conch Cement better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Anhui Conch Cement .

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.

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