Key Insights

• Insiders appear to have a vested interest in TROOPS' growth, as seen by their sizeable ownership
• 51% of the business is held by the top 2 shareholders
• Using data from company's past performance alongside ownership research, one can better assess the future performance of a company

A look at the shareholders of TROOPS, Inc. (NASDAQ:TROO) can tell us which group is most powerful. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual insiders with 52% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

So it follows, every decision made by insiders of TROOPS regarding the company's future would be crucial to them.

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

See our latest analysis for TROOPS

What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About TROOPS?

Institutional investors often avoid companies that are too small, too illiquid or too risky for their tastes. But it's unusual to see larger companies without any institutional investors.

There could be various reasons why no institutions own shares in a company. Typically, small, newly listed companies don't attract much attention from fund managers, because it would not be possible for large fund managers to build a meaningful position in the company. It is also possible that fund managers don't own the stock because they aren't convinced it will perform well. TROOPS' earnings and revenue track record (below) may not be compelling to institutional investors -- or they simply might not have looked at the business closely.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in TROOPS. The company's largest shareholder is Kai Kai Kwok, with ownership of 29%. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 23% and 0.6% of the stock.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 2 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. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known.

Insider Ownership Of TROOPS

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. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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.

It seems that insiders own more than half the TROOPS, Inc. stock. This gives them a lot of power. So they have a US$92m stake in this US$178m business. Most would be pleased to see the board is investing alongside them. You may wish todiscover (for free) if they have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 48% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over TROOPS. 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.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand TROOPS better, we need to consider many other factors. Like risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for TROOPS (of which 1 is concerning!) you should know about.

Of course this may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free free list of interesting companies.

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.