Individual investors are OAT Agrio Co., Ltd.'s (TSE:4979) biggest owners and were rewarded after market cap rose by JP¥2.3b last week

Key Insights

• OAT Agrio's significant individual investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• 52% of the business is held by the top 12 shareholders
• Institutional ownership in OAT Agrio is 25%

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A look at the shareholders of OAT Agrio Co., Ltd. (TSE:4979) can tell us which group is most powerful. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 36% to be precise, is individual investors. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

As a result, individual investors were the biggest beneficiaries of last week’s 11% gain.

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

View our latest analysis for OAT Agrio

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About OAT Agrio?

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.

We can see that OAT Agrio does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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. 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 OAT Agrio's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

OAT Agrio is not owned by hedge funds. Hikari Tsushin, Inc. is currently the company's largest shareholder with 7.6% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 5.4% and 5.3%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. Additionally, the company's CEO Hisashi Oka directly holds 1.8% of the total shares outstanding.

After doing some more digging, we found that the top 12 have the combined ownership of 52% in the company, suggesting that no single shareholder has significant control over the company.

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. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known.

Insider Ownership Of OAT Agrio

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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.

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.

We can see that insiders own shares in OAT Agrio Co., Ltd.. As individuals, the insiders collectively own JP¥657m worth of the JP¥23b company. Some would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board, though we generally prefer to see bigger insider holdings. But it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 36% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. 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

We can see that Private Companies own 7.4%, of the shares on issue. 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 26% of OAT Agrio stock. 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.

I always like to check for a history of revenue growth. You can too, by accessing this free chart of historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph.

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.

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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.