retail investors who own 56% along with institutions invested in iA Financial Corporation Inc. (TSE:IAG) saw increase in their holdings value last week

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by retail investors in iA Financial indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• The top 25 shareholders own 36% of the company
• Insiders have sold recently

We check all companies for important risks. See what we found for iA Financial in our free report.

A look at the shareholders of iA Financial Corporation Inc. (TSE:IAG) can tell us which group is most powerful. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are retail investors with 56% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Following a 5.7% increase in the stock price last week, retail investors profited the most, but institutions who own 44% stock also stood to gain from the increase.

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

Check out our latest analysis for iA Financial

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About iA Financial?

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.

We can see that iA Financial does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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 iA Financial's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

iA Financial is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec with 11% of shares outstanding. With 3.9% and 2.6% of the shares outstanding respectively, The Vanguard Group, Inc. and BlackRock, Inc. are the second and third largest shareholders.

A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 25 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where no single shareholder has a majority.

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 iA Financial

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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 most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of iA Financial Corporation Inc.. Being so large, we would not expect insiders to own a large proportion of the stock. Collectively, they own CA$21m of stock. It is always good to see at least some insider ownership, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public -- including retail investors -- own 56% of iA Financial. This level of ownership gives investors from the wider public some power to sway key policy decisions such as board composition, executive compensation, and the dividend payout ratio.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important.

I always like to check for a history of revenue growth. You can too, by accessing this free chart of historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph.

If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts.

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.