While institutions own 14% of Aeroports de Paris SA (EPA:ADP), state or government are its largest shareholders with 51% ownership

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by state or government in Aeroports de Paris indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• 51% of the company is held by a single shareholder (France)
• 14% of Aeroports de Paris is held by Institutions

A look at the shareholders of Aeroports de Paris SA (EPA:ADP) can tell us which group is most powerful. We can see that state or government own the lion's share in the company with 51% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

And institutions on the other hand have a 14% ownership in the company. Institutions will often hold stock in bigger companies, and we expect to see insiders owning a noticeable percentage of the smaller ones.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Aeroports de Paris.

Check out our latest analysis for Aeroports de Paris

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Aeroports de Paris?

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.

Aeroports de Paris 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. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Aeroports de Paris' earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Aeroports de Paris. France is currently the company's largest shareholder with 51% of shares outstanding. With such a huge stake in the ownership, we infer that they have significant control of the future of the company. With 8.0% and 7.7% of the shares outstanding respectively, Vinci SA and SAS Rue La Boetie are the second and third largest shareholders.

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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Aeroports de Paris

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.

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 suggests that insiders own under 1% of Aeroports de Paris SA in their own names. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. Being so large, we would not expect insiders to own a large proportion of the stock. Collectively, they own €81k of stock. It is always good to see at least some insider ownership, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 13% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Aeroports de Paris. 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 7.7%, of the Aeroports de Paris 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

Public companies currently own 8.0% of Aeroports de Paris stock. It's hard to say for sure but this suggests they have entwined business interests. This might be a strategic stake, so it's worth watching this space for changes in ownership.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Be aware that Aeroports de Paris is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those is a bit concerning...

Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

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.