While institutions own 35% of Whirlpool of India Limited (NSE:WHIRLPOOL), public companies are its largest shareholders with 51% ownership

Key Insights

• Significant control over Whirlpool of India by public companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• Whirlpool Corporation owns 51% of the company
• Institutions own 35% of Whirlpool of India

A look at the shareholders of Whirlpool of India Limited (NSE:WHIRLPOOL) can tell us which group is most powerful. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 51% to be precise, is public companies. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Meanwhile, institutions make up 35% of the company’s shareholders. Institutions often own shares in more established companies, while it's not unusual to see insiders own a fair bit of smaller companies.

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

View our latest analysis for Whirlpool of India

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Whirlpool of India?

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.

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

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Whirlpool of India. Our data shows that Whirlpool Corporation is the 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 9.7% and 5.9% of the shares outstanding respectively, SBI Funds Management Limited and Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Limited 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. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of Whirlpool of India

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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.

Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of Whirlpool of India Limited. It is a pretty big company, so it would be possible for board members to own a meaningful interest in the company, without owning much of a proportional interest. In this case, they own around ₹1.4k worth of shares (at current prices). 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 14% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Whirlpool of India. 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.

Public Company Ownership

Public companies currently own 51% of Whirlpool of India stock. We can't be certain but it is quite possible this is a strategic stake. The businesses may be similar, or work together.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Whirlpool of India better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Whirlpool of India .

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.