Institutions own 32% of Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. (TSE:3099) shares but retail investors control 60% of the company

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by retail investors in Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• 40% of the business is held by the top 25 shareholders
• Institutional ownership in Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings is 32%

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. (TSE:3099), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are retail investors with 60% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

Meanwhile, institutions make up 32% of the company’s shareholders. Institutions often own shares in more established companies, while it's not unusual to see insiders own a fair bit of smaller companies.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings.

Check out our latest analysis for Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. 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 Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings' earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings. The company's largest shareholder is Nomura Asset Management Co., Ltd., with ownership of 5.2%. The second and third largest shareholders are Mitsukoshi Health and Welfare Foundation, Endowment Arm and The Vanguard Group, Inc., with an equal amount of shares to their name at 3.5%.

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 Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings

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.

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 suggests that insiders own under 1% of Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. in their own names. It is a pretty big company, so it would be possible for board members to own a meaningful interest in the company, without owning much of a proportional interest. In this case, they own around JP¥576m worth of shares (at current prices). It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

The general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 60% of Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings shares. This size of ownership gives investors from the general public some collective power. They can and probably do influence decisions on executive compensation, dividend policies and proposed business acquisitions.

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 Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings you should be aware of, and 1 of them is concerning.

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.

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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.