While individual investors own 37% of Lotus Bakeries NV (EBR:LOTB), private companies are its largest shareholders with 50% ownership

Key Insights

• Significant control over Lotus Bakeries by private companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• 50% of the company is held by a single shareholder (Stichting Administratiekantoor van Aandelen Bisinvest en Lotus Bakeries)
• Institutions own 12% of Lotus Bakeries

If you want to know who really controls Lotus Bakeries NV (EBR:LOTB), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 50% stake, private companies 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).

Meanwhile, individual investors make up 37% of the company’s shareholders.

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

Check out our latest analysis for Lotus Bakeries

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Lotus Bakeries?

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.

Lotus Bakeries 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. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Lotus Bakeries, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Lotus Bakeries. The company's largest shareholder is Stichting Administratiekantoor van Aandelen Bisinvest en Lotus Bakeries, with ownership of 50%. This implies that they have majority interest control of the future of the company. The Vanguard Group, Inc. is the second largest shareholder owning 2.0% of common stock, and BlackRock, Inc. holds about 2.0% of the company 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. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of Lotus Bakeries

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.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

Our data cannot confirm that board members are holding shares personally. Not all jurisdictions have the same rules around disclosing insider ownership, and it is possible we have missed something, here. So you can click here learn more about the CEO.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 37% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 50%, of the Lotus Bakeries stock. 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.

I like to dive deeper into how a company has performed in the past. You can access this interactive graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow, for free.

Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

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.