Fresenius SE & Co. KGaA's (ETR:FRE) largest shareholders are individual investors with 41% ownership, institutions own 32%

Key Insights

• Fresenius SE KGaA's significant individual investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• The top 24 shareholders own 50% of the company
• Institutions own 32% of Fresenius SE KGaA

A look at the shareholders of Fresenius SE & Co. KGaA (ETR:FRE) can tell us which group is most powerful. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 41% to be precise, is individual investors. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Meanwhile, institutions make up 32% of the company’s shareholders. Generally speaking, as a company grows, institutions will increase their ownership. Conversely, insiders often decrease their ownership over time.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Fresenius SE KGaA, beginning with the chart below.

View our latest analysis for Fresenius SE KGaA

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Fresenius SE KGaA?

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.

Fresenius SE KGaA already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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 Fresenius SE KGaA's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Fresenius SE KGaA is not owned by hedge funds. Else Kroner-Fresenius Foundation, Endowment Arm is currently the largest shareholder, with 27% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 4.5% and 3.0%, of the shares outstanding, respectively.

A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 24 shareholders have a combined ownership of 50% 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. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of Fresenius SE KGaA

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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.

Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group.

Our data cannot confirm that board members are holding shares personally. Not all jurisdictions have the same rules around disclosing insider ownership, and it is possible we have missed something, here. So you can click here learn more about the CEO.

General Public Ownership

With a 41% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Fresenius SE KGaA. 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.

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. Be aware that Fresenius SE KGaA is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis , 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.