Both public companies who control a good portion of CRISIL Limited (NSE:CRISIL) along with institutions must be dismayed after last week's 3.2% decrease

Key Insights

• Significant control over CRISIL by public companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• The largest shareholder of the company is S&P Global Inc. with a 67% stake
• Institutions own 17% of CRISIL

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Every investor in CRISIL Limited (NSE:CRISIL) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. With 67% stake, public companies possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

While the holdings of public companies took a hit after last week’s 3.2% price drop, institutions with their 17% holdings also suffered.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of CRISIL.

View our latest analysis for CRISIL

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About CRISIL?

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 CRISIL. 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 CRISIL, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

CRISIL is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is S&P Global Inc. with 67% of shares outstanding. This essentially means that they have extensive influence, if not outright control, over the future of the corporation. With 5.2% and 3.0% of the shares outstanding respectively, Estate Of Rakesh Radheshyam Jhunjhunwala and GIC Asset Management Company Ltd. are the second and third largest shareholders.

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. While there is some analyst coverage, the company is probably not widely covered. So it could gain more attention, down the track.

Insider Ownership Of CRISIL

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.

We can see that insiders own shares in CRISIL Limited. The insiders have a meaningful stake worth ₹5.0b. Most would see this as a real positive. If you would like to explore the question of insider alignment, you can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 10% stake in CRISIL. 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 5.2%, 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.

Public Company Ownership

It appears to us that public companies own 67% of CRISIL. 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:

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.

Many find it useful to take an in depth look at how a company has performed in the past. You can access this detailed graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

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.