Yahoo Finance Could The Western Alaska Minerals Corp. (CVE:WAM) Ownership Structure Tell Us Something Useful?
If you want to know who really controls Western Alaska Minerals Corp. (CVE:WAM), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. Institutions will often hold stock in bigger companies, and we expect to see insiders owning a noticeable percentage of the smaller ones. I quite like to see at least a little bit of insider ownership. As Charlie Munger said 'Show me the incentive and I will show you the outcome.
With a market capitalization of CA$140m, Western Alaska Minerals is a small cap stock, so it might not be well known by many institutional investors. Our analysis of the ownership of the company, below, shows that institutions are not on the share registry. We can zoom in on the different ownership groups, to learn more about Western Alaska Minerals.
See our latest analysis for Western Alaska Minerals
What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Western Alaska Minerals?
Small companies that are not very actively traded often lack institutional investors, but it's less common to see large companies without them.
There are multiple explanations for why institutions don't own a stock. The most common is that the company is too small relative to funds under management, so the institution does not bother to look closely at the company. It is also possible that fund managers don't own the stock because they aren't convinced it will perform well. Western Alaska Minerals' earnings and revenue track record (below) may not be compelling to institutional investors -- or they simply might not have looked at the business closely.
It would appear that 15% of Western Alaska Minerals shares are controlled by hedge funds. That catches my attention because hedge funds sometimes try to influence management, or bring about changes that will create near term value for shareholders. The company's largest shareholder is Crescat Portfolio Management LLC, with ownership of 15%. The second and third largest shareholders are Joan Marrs and Christopher Marrs, with an equal amount of shares to their name at 11%. Note that the second and third-largest shareholders are also Top Key Executive and Chairman of the Board, respectively, meaning that the company's top shareholders are insiders.
A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 12 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where no single shareholder has a majority.
While studying institutional ownership for a company can add value to your research, it is also a good practice to research analyst recommendations to get a deeper understand of a stock's expected performance. We're not picking up on any analyst coverage of the stock at the moment, so the company is unlikely to be widely held.
Insider Ownership Of Western Alaska Minerals
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.
Our most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Western Alaska Minerals Corp.. It has a market capitalization of just CA$140m, and insiders have CA$37m worth of shares in their own names. 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, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 58% of Western Alaska Minerals shares. This size of ownership gives investors from the general public some collective power. They can and probably do influence decisions on executive compensation, dividend policies and proposed business acquisitions.
Next Steps:
It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Western Alaska Minerals better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with Western Alaska Minerals , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
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.
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