Key Insights
-
Significant control over Infratil by retail investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
-
A total of 25 investors have a majority stake in the company with 37% ownership
If you want to know who really controls Infratil Limited ( NZSE:IFT ), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 60% stake, retail investors possess the maximum shares in the company. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).
While institutions who own 35% came under pressure after market cap dropped to NZ$11b last week,retail investors took the most losses.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Infratil.
View our latest analysis for Infratil
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Infratil?
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.
Infratil 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 Infratil's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
Hedge funds don't have many shares in Infratil. BlackRock, Inc. is currently the company's largest shareholder with 5.7% of shares outstanding. JPMorgan Chase & Co. is the second largest shareholder owning 5.2% of common stock, and The Vanguard Group, Inc. holds about 4.1% of the company stock.
A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 25 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where 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 plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.
Insider Ownership Of Infratil
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. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.
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 can report that insiders do own shares in Infratil Limited. This is a big company, so it is good to see this level of alignment. Insiders own NZ$378m worth of shares (at current prices). It is good to see this level of investment by insiders. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.
General Public Ownership
The general public -- including retail investors -- own 60% of Infratil. This level of ownership gives investors from the wider public some power to sway key policy decisions such as board composition, executive compensation, and the dividend payout ratio.
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. Be aware that Infratil is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 2 of those make us uncomfortable...
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 .
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch
with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
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.
