Far East Horizon Limited (HKG:3360) surges 3.3%; private companies who own 42% shares profited along with institutions

Key Insights

• Significant control over Far East Horizon by private companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• A total of 5 investors have a majority stake in the company with 51% ownership
• Institutions own 32% of Far East Horizon

Every investor in Far East Horizon Limited (HKG:3360) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. We can see that private companies own the lion's share in the company with 42% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

While private companies were the group that benefitted the most from last week’s HK$821m market cap gain, institutions too had a 32% share in those profits.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Far East Horizon.

View our latest analysis for Far East Horizon

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Far East Horizon?

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.

Far East Horizon already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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 Far East Horizon's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Far East Horizon is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Sinochem Holdings Corporation Ltd. with 21% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 9.3% and 7.3%, of the shares outstanding, respectively.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 5 shareholders control more than half of the company which implies that this group has considerable sway over the company's decision-making.

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 a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of Far East Horizon

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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 less than 1% of Far East Horizon Limited. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. It is a pretty big company, so it would be possible for board members to own a meaningful interest in the company, without owning much of a proportional interest. In this case, they own around HK$106m worth of shares (at current prices). Arguably, recent buying and selling is just as important to consider. You can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 26% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Far East Horizon. 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 42%, of the Far East Horizon 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 Far East Horizon better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Far East Horizon that you should be aware of.

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.