Autosports Group Limited's (ASX:ASG) insiders are still the largest shareholders with 42% stake despite recent sales

Key Insights

• Significant insider control over Autosports Group implies vested interests in company growth
• 53% of the business is held by the top 4 shareholders
• Recent sales by insiders

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Every investor in Autosports Group Limited (ASX:ASG) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 42% to be precise, is individual insiders. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Even though insiders have sold shares recently, the group owns the most numbers of shares in the company and as a result benefitted the most after market cap rose AU$79m last week.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Autosports Group.

See our latest analysis for Autosports Group

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Autosports Group?

Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Autosports Group. 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. 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 Autosports Group's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Autosports Group is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that James Pagent is the largest shareholder with 22% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 18% and 7.6% of the stock. Nicholas Pagent, who is the second-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Chief Executive Officer.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 4 shareholders control more than half of the company which implies that this group has considerable sway over the company's decision-making.

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. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of Autosports Group

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.

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.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Autosports Group Limited. It has a market capitalization of just AU$906m, and insiders have AU$379m worth of shares in their own names. It is great to see insiders so invested in the business. It might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 15% 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.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 19%, of the Autosports Group stock. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Be aware that Autosports Group is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those is a bit concerning...

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.