Every investor in Nippon Shokubai Co., Ltd. (TSE:4114) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are retail investors with 43% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).
Following a 3.2% decrease in the stock price last week, retail investors suffered the most losses, but institutions who own 40% stock also took a hit.
Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Nippon Shokubai, beginning with the chart below.
View our latest analysis for Nippon Shokubai
Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.
Nippon Shokubai 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 Nippon Shokubai's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
Nippon Shokubai is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is Silchester International Investors LLP, with ownership of 12%. With 5.8% and 5.6% of the shares outstanding respectively, Sumitomo Chemical Company, Limited and ENEOS Holdings, Inc. are the second and third largest shareholders.
A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 15 shareholders have a combined ownership of 51% implying that 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. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.
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. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.
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 less than 1% of Nippon Shokubai Co., Ltd.. Keep in mind that it's a big company, and the insiders own JP¥147m worth of shares. The absolute value might be more important than the proportional share. Arguably, recent buying and selling is just as important to consider. You can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.
The general public-- including retail investors -- own 43% 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.
Public companies currently own 17% of Nippon Shokubai stock. We can't be certain but it is quite possible this is a strategic stake. The businesses may be similar, or work together.
While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Nippon Shokubai .
If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its 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.