ABIVAX Société Anonyme's (EPA:ABVX) 8.2% loss last week hit both individual investors who own 48% as well as institutions

Key Insights

• Significant control over ABIVAX Société Anonyme by private equity firms implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• 52% of the business is held by the top 7 shareholders
• 30% of ABIVAX Société Anonyme is held by Institutions

To get a sense of who is truly in control of ABIVAX Société Anonyme (EPA:ABVX), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. We can see that private equity firms own the lion's share in the company with 48% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Following a 8.2% decrease in the stock price last week, private equity firms suffered the most losses, but institutions who own 30% stock also took a hit.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of ABIVAX Société Anonyme, beginning with the chart below.

See our latest analysis for ABIVAX Société Anonyme

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About ABIVAX Société Anonyme?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in ABIVAX Société Anonyme. 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 ABIVAX Société Anonyme, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in ABIVAX Société Anonyme. TCG Crossover Management, LLC is currently the company's largest shareholder with 9.6% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 8.9% and 8.4% of the stock.

We also observed that the top 7 shareholders account for more than half of the share register, with a few smaller shareholders to balance the interests of the larger ones to a certain extent.

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 ABIVAX Société Anonyme

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.

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 some shares in ABIVAX Société Anonyme. In their own names, insiders own €27m worth of stock in the €745m company. It is good to see some investment by insiders, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

With a 17% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over ABIVAX Société Anonyme. 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 Equity Ownership

Private equity firms hold a 48% stake in ABIVAX Société Anonyme. This suggests they can be influential in key policy decisions. Some might like this, because private equity are sometimes activists who hold management accountable. But other times, private equity is selling out, having taking the company public.

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 3 warning signs with ABIVAX Société Anonyme , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com