Public companies are Network18 Media & Investments Limited's (NSE:NETWORK18) biggest owners and were rewarded after market cap rose by ₹5.6b last week

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by public companies in Network18 Media & Investments indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• 74% of the company is held by a single shareholder (Reliance Industries Limited)
• Past performance of a company along with ownership data serve to give a strong idea about prospects for a business

If you want to know who really controls Network18 Media & Investments Limited (NSE:NETWORK18), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 74% to be precise, is public companies. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

As a result, public companies collectively scored the highest last week as the company hit ₹122b market cap following a 4.8% gain in the stock.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Network18 Media & Investments.

Check out our latest analysis for Network18 Media & Investments

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Network18 Media & Investments?

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 Network18 Media & Investments 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. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Network18 Media & Investments' historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Network18 Media & Investments. The company's largest shareholder is Reliance Industries Limited, with ownership of 74%. With such a huge stake in the ownership, we infer that they have significant control of the future of the company. With 4.5% and 2.9% of the shares outstanding respectively, Nexg Ventures India Pvt Ltd and Arizona Global Services Pvt Ltd 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. We're not picking up on any analyst coverage of the stock at the moment, so the company is unlikely to be widely held.

Insider Ownership Of Network18 Media & Investments

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.

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 cannot confirm that board members are holding shares personally. It is unusual not to have at least some personal holdings by board members, so our data might be flawed. A good next step would be to check how much the CEO is paid.

General Public Ownership

With a 10% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Network18 Media & Investments. 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 10%, of the Network18 Media & Investments 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

It appears to us that public companies own 74% of Network18 Media & Investments. 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. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Network18 Media & Investments you should know about.

Of course this may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free free list of interesting companies.

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.

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

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.