Individual investors account for 40% of ATCO Ltd.'s (TSE:ACO.X) ownership, while private companies account for 34%

Key Insights

• ATCO's significant individual investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• The top 7 shareholders own 51% of the company
• Insiders have been buying lately

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A look at the shareholders of ATCO Ltd. (TSE:ACO.X) can tell us which group is most powerful. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 40% to be precise, is individual investors. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

Private companies, on the other hand, account for 34% of the company's stockholders.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of ATCO.

See our latest analysis for ATCO

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About ATCO?

Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in ATCO. 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. 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 ATCO's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in ATCO. Sentgraf Enterprises Ltd. is currently the company's largest shareholder with 34% of shares outstanding. RBC Global Asset Management Inc. is the second largest shareholder owning 6.5% of common stock, and The Vanguard Group, Inc. holds about 2.7% of the company stock. Additionally, the company's CEO Nancy Southern directly holds 0.7% of the total shares outstanding.

We did some more digging and found that 7 of the top shareholders account for roughly 51% of the register, implying that along with larger shareholders, there are a few smaller shareholders, thereby balancing out each others interests somewhat.

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 ATCO

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.

Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.

Shareholders would probably be interested to learn that insiders own shares in ATCO Ltd.. This is a big company, so it is good to see this level of alignment. Insiders own CA$86m worth of shares (at current prices). It is good to see this level of investment by insiders. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 40% stake in ATCO. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.

Private Company Ownership

We can see that Private Companies own 34%, of the shares on issue. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private 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. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with ATCO , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

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.