Stock Analysis

What Does Frontera Energy Corporation's (TSE:FEC) Ownership Structure Look Like?

TSX:FEC
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I am going to take a deep dive into Frontera Energy Corporation’s (TSX:FEC) most recent ownership structure, not a frequent subject of discussion among individual investors. A company's ownership structure is often linked to its share performance in both the long- and short-term. The effect of an active institutional investor with a similar ownership as a passive pension-fund can be vastly different on a company's corporate governance and accountability to shareholders. While this may be more interesting for long-term investors, short-term investors can also benefit by paying attention to when these institutions trade in order to take advantage of the heightened volatility. Now I will analyze FEC's shareholder registry in more detail.

Check out our latest analysis for Frontera Energy
TSX:FEC Ownership_summary Feb 27th 18
TSX:FEC Ownership_summary Feb 27th 18

Institutional Ownership

With an institutional ownership of 14.02%, FEC can face volatile stock price movements if institutions execute block trades on the open market, more so, when there are relatively small amounts of shares available on the market to trade Although FEC has a high institutional ownership, such stock moves, in the short-term, are more commonly linked to a particular type of active institutional investors – hedge funds. For FEC shareholders, the potential of this type of share price volatility shouldn't be as concerning as hedge fund ownership is is not significant,indicating few chances of such sudden price moves. While that hardly seems concerning, I will explore further into FEC's ownership type to find out how it can affect the company’s investment profile.

Insider Ownership

I find insiders are another important group of stakeholders, who are directly involved in making key decisions related to the use of capital. In essence, insider ownership is more about the alignment of shareholders' interests with the management. Although individuals in FEC hold only a minor stake, it's a good sign for shareholders as the company's executives and directors have their incentives directly linked to the company's performance. It would also be interesting to check what insiders have been doing with their shareholding recently. Insider buying can be a positive indicator of future performance, but a selling decision can be simply driven by personal financial requirements.
TSX:FEC Insider_trading Feb 27th 18
TSX:FEC Insider_trading Feb 27th 18

General Public Ownership

The general public holds a substantial 55.06% stake in FEC, making it a highly popular stock among retail investors. This size of ownership gives retail investors collective power in deciding on major policy decisions such as executive compensation, appointment of directors and acquisitions of businesses. This level of ownership gives retail investors the power to sway key policy decisions such as board composition, executive compensation, and potential acquisitions. This is a positive sign for an investor who wants to be involved in key decision-making of the company.

Private Equity Ownership

With a stake of 30.90%, private equity firms form another important class of owners in FEC. With a stake of 30.90%, they can influence FEC's key policy decisions. An investor should be encouraged by the ownership of these institutions who are known to be experts in increasing efficiency, improving capital structure and opting for value-accretive policy decisions.

Next Steps:

The company's high institutional ownership makes margin of safety a very important consideration to existing investors since long bull and bear trends often emerge when these big-ticket investors see a change in long-term potential of the company. This will enable shareholders to comfortably invest in the company while avoid getting trapped in a sustained sell-off that is often observed in stocks with this level of institutional participation. However, if you are building an investment case for FEC, ownership structure alone should not dictate your decision to buy or sell the stock. Rather, you should be examining fundamental factors such as Frontera Energy's past track record and financial health. I highly recommend you to complete your research by taking a look at the following:

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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Simply Wall St analyst Simply Wall St and Simply Wall St have no position in any of the companies mentioned. This article 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.