Yahoo Finance South32 Limited (ASX:S32) most popular amongst individual investors who own 58% of the shares, institutions hold 36%
Key Insights
South32's significant individual investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
39% of the business is held by the top 25 shareholders
A look at the shareholders of South32 Limited (ASX:S32) can tell us which group is most powerful. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual investors with 58% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).
Institutions, on the other hand, account for 36% of the company's stockholders. Institutions will often hold stock in bigger companies, and we expect to see insiders owning a noticeable percentage of the smaller ones.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about South32.
View our latest analysis for South32
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About South32?
Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices.
We can see that South32 does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. 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 South32'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 South32. The company's largest shareholder is BlackRock, Inc., with ownership of 7.1%. The second and third largest shareholders are The Vanguard Group, Inc. and State Street Global Advisors, Inc., with an equal amount of shares to their name at 6.1%.
Our studies suggest that the top 25 shareholders collectively control less than half of the company's shares, meaning that the company's shares are widely disseminated and there is no dominant shareholder.
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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.
Insider Ownership Of South32
The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.
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 South32 Limited insiders own under 1% of the company. It is a very large company, so it would be surprising to see insiders own a large proportion of the company. Though their holding amounts to less than 1%, we can see that board members collectively own AU$18m worth of shares (at current prices). It is always good to see at least some insider ownership, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.
General Public Ownership
The general public -- including retail investors -- own 58% of South32. With this amount of ownership, retail investors can collectively play a role in decisions that affect shareholder returns, such as dividend policies and the appointment of directors. They can also exercise the power to vote on acquisitions or mergers that may not improve profitability.
Next Steps:
It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand South32 better, we need to consider many other factors.
I like to dive deeper into how a company has performed in the past. You can access this interactive graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow, for free.
But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter future.
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.
