A look at the shareholders of Musashi Seimitsu Industry Co., Ltd. (TSE:7220) can tell us which group is most powerful. We can see that institutions own the lion's share in the company with 52% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).
Last week’s 9.0% gain means that institutional investors were on the positive end of the spectrum even as the company has shown strong longer-term trends. The gains from last week would have further boosted the one-year return to shareholders which currently stand at 118%.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Musashi Seimitsu Industry.
See our latest analysis for Musashi Seimitsu Industry
Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.
Musashi Seimitsu Industry already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. 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 Musashi Seimitsu Industry's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
Investors should note that institutions actually own more than half the company, so they can collectively wield significant power. Hedge funds don't have many shares in Musashi Seimitsu Industry. Honda Motor Co., Ltd. is currently the largest shareholder, with 25% of shares outstanding. With 6.3% and 5.3% of the shares outstanding respectively, Hiroshi Otsuka and T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. are the second and third largest shareholders. Hiroshi Otsuka, who is the second-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Chief Executive Officer.
We also observed that the top 6 shareholders account for more than half of the share register, with a few smaller shareholders to balance the interests of the larger ones to a certain extent.
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. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.
While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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.
Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.
We can see that insiders own shares in Musashi Seimitsu Industry Co., Ltd.. The insiders have a meaningful stake worth JP¥15b. Most would see this as a real positive. If you would like to explore the question of insider alignment, you can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.
With a 15% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Musashi Seimitsu Industry. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.
It appears to us that public companies own 25% of Musashi Seimitsu Industry. We can't be certain but it is quite possible this is a strategic stake. The businesses may be similar, or work together.
I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Case in point: We've spotted 2 warning signs for Musashi Seimitsu Industry you should be aware of, and 1 of them is concerning.
Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.
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.