While private companies own 31% of Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane S.p.A. (BIT:INW), public companies are its largest shareholders with 34% ownership

Key Insights

• Significant control over Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane by public companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• The top 2 shareholders own 65% of the company
• Institutions own 18% of Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane

A look at the shareholders of Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane S.p.A. (BIT:INW) can tell us which group is most powerful. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are public companies with 34% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Private companies, on the other hand, account for 31% of the company's stockholders.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane, beginning with the chart below.

See our latest analysis for Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane. 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 Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane. Vodafone Group Public Limited Company is currently the company's largest shareholder with 34% of shares outstanding. With 31% and 3.1% of the shares outstanding respectively, Daphne 3 S.p.A. and Invesco Ltd. are the second and third largest shareholders.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 2 shareholders have a majority ownership in the company, meaning that they are powerful enough to influence the decisions of the company.

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. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane

The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. 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 Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane S.p.A.. We do note, however, it is possible insiders have an indirect interest through a private company or other corporate structure. It is a very large company, so it would be surprising to see insiders own a large proportion of the company. Though their holding amounts to less than 1%, we can see that board members collectively own €1.1m 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

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 17% stake in Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane. 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

It seems that Private Companies own 31%, of the Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane stock. 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

Public companies currently own 34% of Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane stock. This may be a strategic interest and the two companies may have related business interests. It could be that they have de-merged. This holding is probably worth investigating further.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane (1 is concerning!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

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.

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.