Imerys S.A.'s (EPA:NK) market cap surged €96m last week, public companies who have a lot riding on the company were rewarded

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by public companies in Imerys indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• The largest shareholder of the company is Groupe Bruxelles Lambert SA with a 55% stake
• Institutions own 16% of Imerys

If you want to know who really controls Imerys S.A. (EPA:NK), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are public companies with 55% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Clearly, public companies benefitted the most after the company's market cap rose by €96m last week.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Imerys, beginning with the chart below.

See our latest analysis for Imerys

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Imerys?

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.

Imerys 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. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Imerys' historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Imerys. The company's largest shareholder is Groupe Bruxelles Lambert SA, with ownership of 55%. This implies that they have majority interest control of the future of the company. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 5.1% and 1.7% of the stock.

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 Imerys

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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 see that insiders own shares in Imerys S.A.. It is a pretty big company, so it is generally a positive to see some potentially meaningful alignment. In this case, they own around €135m 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 23% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders.

Public Company Ownership

Public companies currently own 55% of Imerys stock. It's hard to say for sure but this suggests they have entwined business interests. This might be a strategic stake, so it's worth watching this space for changes in ownership.

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. Take risks for example - Imerys has 3 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

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.

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.