Private companies own 18% of WCT Holdings Berhad (KLSE:WCT) shares but individual investors control 46% of the company
editorial-team@simplywallst.com (Simply Wall St)
4 min read
Key Insights
Significant control over WCT Holdings Berhad by individual investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
If you want to know who really controls WCT Holdings Berhad (KLSE:WCT), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual investors with 46% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).
And private companies on the other hand have a 18% ownership in the company.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about WCT Holdings Berhad.
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About WCT Holdings Berhad?
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.
As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in WCT Holdings Berhad. 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. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see WCT Holdings Berhad's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.
Hedge funds don't have many shares in WCT Holdings Berhad. Our data shows that Dominion Nexus Sdn Bhd is the largest shareholder with 17% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 9.8% and 6.7% of the stock. Siew Lim, who is the third-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Chairman of the Board.
A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 15 shareholders have a combined ownership of 50% implying that no single shareholder has a majority.
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 WCT Holdings Berhad
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.
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 most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of WCT Holdings Berhad. Insiders own RM218m worth of shares in the RM1.4b company. We would say this shows alignment with shareholders, but it is worth noting that the company is still quite small; some insiders may have founded the business. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.
General Public Ownership
The general public-- including retail investors -- own 46% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.
Private Company Ownership
Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 18%, of the company's shares. 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.
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.