While public companies own 32% of Clariant AG (VTX:CLN), retail investors are its largest shareholders with 37% ownership

Key Insights

• Clariant's significant retail investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• The top 6 shareholders own 51% of the company
• Institutional ownership in Clariant is 22%

Trump has pledged to "unleash" American oil and gas and these 15 US stocks have developments that are poised to benefit.

A look at the shareholders of Clariant AG (VTX:CLN) can tell us which group is most powerful. With 37% stake, retail investors possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Meanwhile, public companies make up 32% of the company’s shareholders.

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

View our latest analysis for Clariant

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Clariant?

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.

Clariant 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. 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 Clariant's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Clariant. Our data shows that Saudi Arabian Oil Company is the largest shareholder with 32% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 5.2% and 5.0%, of the shares outstanding, respectively.

We did some more digging and found that 6 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 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 are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of Clariant

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 Clariant AG. This is a big company, so it is good to see this level of alignment. Insiders own CHF91m 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

With a 37% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Clariant. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 5.2%, of the Clariant stock. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company.

Public Company Ownership

It appears to us that public companies own 32% of Clariant. This may be a strategic interest and the two companies may have related business interests. It could be that they have de-merged. This holding is probably worth investigating further.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Clariant better, we need to consider many other factors. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for Clariant you should be aware of, and 1 of them can't be ignored.

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.