Private companies are STO Express Co.,Ltd's (SZSE:002468) biggest owners and were rewarded after market cap rose by CN¥1.0b last week

Key Insights

• Significant control over STO ExpressLtd by private companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• 54% of the business is held by the top 3 shareholders
• Institutions own 12% of STO ExpressLtd

A look at the shareholders of STO Express Co.,Ltd (SZSE:002468) can tell us which group is most powerful. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 30% to be precise, is private companies. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

As a result, private companies collectively scored the highest last week as the company hit CN¥14b market cap following a 8.0% gain in the stock.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of STO ExpressLtd.

View our latest analysis for STO ExpressLtd

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About STO ExpressLtd?

Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices.

We can see that STO ExpressLtd does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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. 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 STO ExpressLtd's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

STO ExpressLtd is not owned by hedge funds. Alibaba Group Holding Limited is currently the company's largest shareholder with 25% of shares outstanding. Shanghai Deyin Investment Holding Co., Ltd. is the second largest shareholder owning 24% of common stock, and Shanghai Derun Second Industrial Development Co., Ltd. holds about 5.0% of the company stock.

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.

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of STO ExpressLtd

The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. 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.

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.

Shareholders would probably be interested to learn that insiders own shares in STO Express Co.,Ltd. The insiders have a meaningful stake worth CN¥839m. 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

With a 25% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over STO ExpressLtd. 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

We can see that Private Companies own 30%, of the shares on issue. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.

Public Company Ownership

It appears to us that public companies own 25% of STO ExpressLtd. It's hard to say for sure but this suggests they have entwined business interests. This might be a strategic stake, so it's worth watching this space for changes in ownership.

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.

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.

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.