Key Insights

• Insiders appear to have a vested interest in FinVolution Group's growth, as seen by their sizeable ownership
• A total of 4 investors have a majority stake in the company with 51% ownership

Every investor in FinVolution Group (NYSE:FINV) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. We can see that individual insiders own the lion's share in the company with 48% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

As a result, insiders scored the highest last week as the company hit US$2.4b market cap following a 3.1% gain in the stock.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of FinVolution Group, beginning with the chart below.

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About FinVolution Group?

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.

FinVolution Group already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. 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 FinVolution Group's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in FinVolution Group. From our data, we infer that the largest shareholder is Shaofeng Gu (who also holds the title of Top Key Executive) with 34% of shares outstanding. Its usually considered a good sign when insiders own a significant number of shares in the company, and in this case, we're glad to see a company insider play the role of a key stakeholder. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 6.8% and 6.5% of the stock. Interestingly, the second-largest shareholder, Jun Zhang is also Top Key Executive, again, pointing towards strong insider ownership amongst the company's top shareholders. In addition, we found that Tiezheng Li, the CEO has 3.0% of the shares allocated to their name.

On looking further, we found that 51% of the shares are owned by the top 4 shareholders. In other words, these shareholders have a meaningful say in the decisions of the company.

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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of FinVolution Group

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.

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 information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in FinVolution Group. It has a market capitalization of just US$2.4b, and insiders have US$1.2b worth of shares in their own names. That's quite significant. Most would be pleased to see the board is investing alongside them. You may wish to access this free chart showing recent trading by insiders.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 18% 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.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand FinVolution Group better, we need to consider many other factors.

Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the 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.

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.