Retail investors who hold 49% of Nitto Boseki Co., Ltd. (TSE:3110) gained 5.7%, institutions profited as well

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by retail investors in Nitto Boseki indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• The top 22 shareholders own 50% of the company
• Institutions own 41% of Nitto Boseki

If you want to know who really controls Nitto Boseki Co., Ltd. (TSE:3110), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 49% stake, retail investors possess the maximum shares in the company. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

Following a 5.7% increase in the stock price last week, retail investors profited the most, but institutions who own 41% stock also stood to gain from the increase.

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

View our latest analysis for Nitto Boseki

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Nitto Boseki?

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.

Nitto Boseki already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Nitto Boseki's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Nitto Boseki. Sumitomo Realty & Development Co., Ltd. is currently the largest shareholder, with 6.5% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 4.9% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 4.4% by the third-largest shareholder.

A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 22 shareholders have a combined ownership of 50% implying that no single shareholder has a majority.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Nitto Boseki

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. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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 most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of Nitto Boseki Co., Ltd.. It's a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own JP¥130m worth of shares. 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-- including retail investors -- own 49% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.

Public Company Ownership

It appears to us that public companies own 9.3% of Nitto Boseki. 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 Nitto Boseki better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Nitto Boseki that you should be aware of.

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.