KBC Ancora SA's (EBR:KBCA) market cap surged €216m last week, private companies who have a lot riding on the company were rewarded
Key Insights
- The considerable ownership by private companies in KBC Ancora indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
- 51% of the company is held by a single shareholder (Cera S.C.R.L.)
- 10% of KBC Ancora is held by Institutions
To get a sense of who is truly in control of KBC Ancora SA (EBR:KBCA), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. We can see that private companies own the lion's share in the company with 51% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).
As a result, private companies collectively scored the highest last week as the company hit €4.6b market cap following a 4.9% gain in the stock.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of KBC Ancora.
Check out our latest analysis for KBC Ancora
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About KBC Ancora?
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.
We can see that KBC Ancora 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. 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 KBC Ancora's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in KBC Ancora. Our data shows that Cera S.C.R.L. is the largest shareholder with 51% of shares outstanding. This implies that they have majority interest control of the future of the company. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 1.9% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 1.6% by the third-largest shareholder.
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 is some analyst coverage of the stock, but it could still become more well known, with time.
Insider Ownership Of KBC Ancora
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.
We note our data does not show any board members holding shares, personally. Given we are not picking up on insider ownership, we may have missing data. Therefore, it would be interesting to assess the CEO compensation and tenure, here.
General Public Ownership
With a 39% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over KBC Ancora. 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.
Private Company Ownership
Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 51%, of the company's shares. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company.
Next Steps:
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. Like risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for KBC Ancora (of which 1 can't be ignored!) you should know about.
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.