Persol Holdings Co.,Ltd. (TSE:2181) surges 4.1%; retail investors who own 56% shares profited along with institutions

Key Insights

• Significant control over Persol HoldingsLtd by retail investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• A total of 25 investors have a majority stake in the company with 38% ownership
• Institutions own 42% of Persol HoldingsLtd

If you want to know who really controls Persol Holdings Co.,Ltd. (TSE:2181), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 56% stake, retail investors possess the maximum shares in the company. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

While retail investors were the group that benefitted the most from last week’s JP¥19b market cap gain, institutions too had a 42% share in those profits.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Persol HoldingsLtd, beginning with the chart below.

Check out our latest analysis for Persol HoldingsLtd

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Persol HoldingsLtd?

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.

Persol HoldingsLtd already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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 Persol HoldingsLtd, (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 Persol HoldingsLtd. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. with 8.9% of shares outstanding. BlackRock, Inc. is the second largest shareholder owning 3.7% of common stock, and FMR LLC holds about 3.5% of the company stock.

On studying our ownership data, we found that 25 of the top shareholders collectively own less than 50% of the share register, implying that no single individual has a majority interest.

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 Persol HoldingsLtd

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.

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 report that insiders do own shares in Persol Holdings Co.,Ltd.. It is a pretty big company, so it is generally a positive to see some potentially meaningful alignment. In this case, they own around JP¥6.9b worth of shares (at current prices). It is good to see this level of investment by insiders. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 56% of Persol HoldingsLtd shares. With this amount of ownership, retail investors can collectively play a role in decisions that affect shareholder returns, such as dividend policies and the appointment of directors. They can also exercise the power to vote on acquisitions or mergers that may not improve profitability.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for Persol HoldingsLtd you should be aware of.

If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts.

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.