Cross-listed stocks - how to get capital allocation per country?

Question

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_listing

Cross-listing (or multi-listing, or interlisting) of shares is when a firm lists its equity shares on one or more foreign stock exchange in addition to its domestic exchange. To be cross-listed, a company must thus comply with the requirements of all the stock exchanges in which it is listed, such as filing.

Is there a way to figure out the capital allocation per country? I mean when a stock is listed in London, New York and Hong Kong, what percentage of the company is owned by investors in each country.

TIA.

Answer 1

Yes, you can; but it's not easy (from the accounts of the company in question).

Consider eg BHP Billiton or Rio Tinto, which have dual listings in the UK and Australia, as well as ADRs listed in the US. BHP, like most companies, will ensure that an Aussie share is worth the same as a British share is worth the same as an ADR share. So their "share count" they report is the sum of the three; and the mix doesn't matter (to them) or is reported (by them).

But if you track down every share class of the same company listed on every exchange the exchange will have a record of the shares outstanding on that exchange. Which would give you the split you seek.

But you have to go to every relevant exchange to decompose any's company mix thus (unless the company chooses to report it themselves). And tally those for every company on every exchange etc.

Answer 2

Look up the ownership of the company. I know there’s a tab in softwares such as FactSet and Bloomberg terminal that provides data about the ownership of any company broken down by institution or country.

You can get the amount of equity listing per each country (capital allocation) via the annual or quarterly report. They usually state number of shares listed in Hong Kong and number of shares listed in London. You only have to do couple of currency conversions to get an accurate estimate.

However cross listing may not give you a clear answer on the ownership by country.

I know some portfolio managers would purchase the US listing over the Hong Kong listing due to liquidity reasons (I.e. days to liquidate the position). Also some portfolio managers would do the opposite due to geopolitical risks/uncertainty over US & China relations.

Answer 3

Remember - country of listing doesn't have much to do with who actually owns the stock. Apple is listed in the US and owned by investors around the world.

Listing in different exchanges really does three things:

1. It means that the company complies with listing and reporting requirements of the local regulator. This can add a perception of quality to the company.
2. It makes the tradable on that exchange. For example, a company listed in a small European company might find even their local investors prefer to invest in the company when you can trade it on Nasdaq.
3. Some countries, like China, have capital controls in place. In that case you do have captive investors who can only trade on a given local exchange.