Stock Analysis

Could The Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust (TSE:D.UN) Ownership Structure Tell Us Something Useful?

TSX:D.UN
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A look at the shareholders of Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust (TSE:D.UN) can tell us which group is most powerful. Large companies usually have institutions as shareholders, and we usually see insiders owning shares in smaller companies. Companies that have been privatized tend to have low insider ownership.

Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust has a market capitalization of CA$1.2b, so we would expect some institutional investors to have noticed the stock. Our analysis of the ownership of the company, below, shows that institutions are noticeable on the share registry. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust.

View our latest analysis for Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust

ownership-breakdown
TSX:D.UN Ownership Breakdown December 2nd 2020

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust?

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.

Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

earnings-and-revenue-growth
TSX:D.UN Earnings and Revenue Growth December 2nd 2020

Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Dream Unlimited Corp. with 15% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 9.4% and 8.7%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. Additionally, the company's CEO Michael Cooper directly holds 1.0% of the total shares outstanding.

A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 11 shareholders have a combined ownership of 51% implying that no single shareholder has a majority.

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. While there is some analyst coverage, the company is probably not widely covered. So it could gain more attention, down the track.

Insider Ownership Of Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust

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.

Shareholders would probably be interested to learn that insiders own shares in Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust. It has a market capitalization of just CA$1.2b, and insiders have CA$15m 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, with a 35% stake in the company, will not 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

With an ownership of 8.5%, private equity firms are in a position to play a role in shaping corporate strategy with a focus on value creation. Sometimes we see private equity stick around for the long term, but generally speaking they have a shorter investment horizon and -- as the name suggests -- don't invest in public companies much. After some time they may look to sell and redeploy capital elsewhere.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 9.3%, of the Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust stock. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Dream Office Real Estate Investment Trust (including 1 which is shouldn't be ignored) .

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. 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.
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