SPIE SA's (EPA:SPIE) high institutional ownership speaks for itself as stock continues to impress, up 3.3% over last week
Simply Wall St · 09/15 11:00

Key Insights

  • Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, SPIE's stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions
  • A total of 16 investors have a majority stake in the company with 51% ownership
  • Ownership research along with analyst forecasts data help provide a good understanding of opportunities in a stock

Every investor in SPIE SA (EPA:SPIE) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are institutions with 55% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

And as as result, institutional investors reaped the most rewards after the company's stock price gained 3.3% last week. The gains from last week would have further boosted the one-year return to shareholders which currently stand at 27%.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of SPIE.

See our latest analysis for SPIE

ownership-breakdown
ENXTPA:SPIE Ownership Breakdown September 15th 2023

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About SPIE?

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.

We can see that SPIE 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 SPIE's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

earnings-and-revenue-growth
ENXTPA:SPIE Earnings and Revenue Growth September 15th 2023

Since institutional investors own more than half the issued stock, the board will likely have to pay attention to their preferences. SPIE is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is SPIE SA ESOP, with ownership of 6.9%. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 6.5% and 5.5%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. In addition, we found that Gauthier Louette, the CEO has 1.5% of the shares allocated to their name.

After doing some more digging, we found that the top 16 have the combined ownership of 51% in the company, suggesting that no single shareholder has significant control over the company.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of SPIE

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. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves.

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 report that insiders do own shares in SPIE SA. This is a big company, so it is good to see this level of alignment. Insiders own €71m worth of shares (at current prices). If you would like to explore the question of insider alignment, you can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 25% stake in SPIE. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Private Equity Ownership

With an ownership of 5.5%, private equity firms are in a position to play a role in shaping corporate strategy with a focus on value creation. Some investors might be encouraged by this, since private equity are sometimes able to encourage strategies that help the market see the value in the company. Alternatively, those holders might be exiting the investment after taking it public.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 6.9%, of the SPIE stock. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.

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. For example, we've discovered 3 warning signs for SPIE that you should be aware of before investing here.

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.