CompuGroup Medical SE & Co. KGaA's (ETR:COP) top holders are insiders and they are likely disappointed by the recent 5.0% drop

Key Insights

• Insiders appear to have a vested interest in CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA's growth, as seen by their sizeable ownership
• 51% of the business is held by the top 4 shareholders
• Institutional ownership in CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA is 29%

A look at the shareholders of CompuGroup Medical SE & Co. KGaA (ETR:COP) can tell us which group is most powerful. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual insiders with 52% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And following last week's 5.0% decline in share price, insiders suffered the most losses.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA.

See our latest analysis for CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA?

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 CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA. 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 CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Frank Gotthardt with 34% of shares outstanding. With 6.9% and 6.5% of the shares outstanding respectively, Daniel Gotthardt and Brigitte Gotthardt are the second and third largest shareholders.

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 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. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA

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. 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.

Our information suggests that insiders own more than half of CompuGroup Medical SE & Co. KGaA. This gives them effective control of the company. That means insiders have a very meaningful €754m stake in this €1.5b business. It is good to see this level of investment. You can check here to see if those insiders have been selling any of their shares.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 19% stake in CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA. 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.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for CompuGroup Medical SE KGaA you should know about.

But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter 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.