Retail investors in Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings S.A. (ATH:EUROB) are its biggest bettors, and their bets paid off as stock gained 4.4% last week

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by retail investors in Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• 51% of the business is held by the top 17 shareholders
• 31% of Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings is held by Institutions

If you want to know who really controls Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings S.A. (ATH:EUROB), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. We can see that retail investors own the lion's share in the company with 33% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

As a result, retail investors collectively scored the highest last week as the company hit €8.0b market cap following a 4.4% gain in the stock.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings.

Check out our latest analysis for Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings?

Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.

We can see that Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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 Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

It would appear that 5.1% of Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings shares are controlled by hedge funds. That catches my attention because hedge funds sometimes try to influence management, or bring about changes that will create near term value for shareholders. The company's largest shareholder is Odyssey Reinsurance Company, with ownership of 9.5%. The second and third largest shareholders are Capital Research and Management Company and Helikon Investments Limited, with an equal amount of shares to their name at 5.1%.

After doing some more digging, we found that the top 17 have the combined ownership of 51% in the company, suggesting that no single shareholder has significant control over the company.

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 Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings

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.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

Our information suggests that Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings S.A. insiders own under 1% of the company. 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 €4.8m of stock. In this sort of situation, it can be more interesting to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 33% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 32%, of the company's shares. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.

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 Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those can't be ignored...

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