Kolibri Global Energy Inc.'s (TSE:KEI) largest shareholders are retail investors who were rewarded as market cap surged CA$37m last week

Key Insights

• Kolibri Global Energy's significant retail investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• The top 4 shareholders own 51% of the company
• Institutional ownership in Kolibri Global Energy is 16%

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To get a sense of who is truly in control of Kolibri Global Energy Inc. (TSE:KEI), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. We can see that retail investors own the lion's share in the company with 36% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

As a result, retail investors were the biggest beneficiaries of last week’s 12% gain.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Kolibri Global Energy.

Check out our latest analysis for Kolibri Global Energy

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Kolibri Global Energy?

Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.

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

It looks like hedge funds own 36% of Kolibri Global Energy shares. That's interesting, because hedge funds can be quite active and activist. Many look for medium term catalysts that will drive the share price higher. The company's largest shareholder is Polygon Global Partners LLP, with ownership of 20%. Livermore Partners LLC is the second largest shareholder owning 16% of common stock, and Harrington Global Limited holds about 11% of the company stock. Additionally, the company's CEO Wolf Regener directly holds 0.9% of the total shares outstanding.

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 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 is a little analyst coverage of the stock, but not much. So there is room for it to gain more coverage.

Insider Ownership Of Kolibri Global Energy

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.

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.

We can see that insiders own shares in Kolibri Global Energy Inc.. It has a market capitalization of just CA$324m, and insiders have CA$3.5m worth of shares, in their own names. Some would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. But it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 36% 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 Equity Ownership

Private equity firms hold a 11% stake in Kolibri Global Energy. This suggests they can be influential in key policy decisions. Some might like this, because private equity are sometimes activists who hold management accountable. But other times, private equity is selling out, having taking the company public.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Kolibri Global Energy better, we need to consider many other factors.

I like to dive deeper into how a company has performed in the past. You can find historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph.

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.