Institutions along with retail investors who hold considerable shares inSCOR SE (EPA:SCR) come under pressure; lose 3.2% of holdings value

Key Insights

• Significant control over SCOR by retail investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• The top 25 shareholders own 39% of the company
• Institutional ownership in SCOR is 38%

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Every investor in SCOR SE (EPA:SCR) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 57% to be precise, is retail investors. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

While institutions, who own 38% shares weren’t spared from last week’s €156m market cap drop, retail investors as a group suffered the maximum losses

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

Check out our latest analysis for SCOR

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About SCOR?

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 SCOR. 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. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of SCOR, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

SCOR is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is CM-CIC Asset Management SA with 5.3% of shares outstanding. The second and third largest shareholders are BNP Paribas SA and Norges Bank Investment Management, with an equal amount of shares to their name at 5.1%.

A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 25 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where no single shareholder has a majority.

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 SCOR

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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 most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of SCOR SE. It's a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own €1.5m worth of shares. It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

The general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 57% of SCOR shares. This level of ownership gives investors from the wider public some power to sway key policy decisions such as board composition, executive compensation, and the dividend payout ratio.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand SCOR better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 2 warning signs with SCOR (at least 1 which doesn't sit too well with us) , 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.