Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. (TSE:9107) stock most popular amongst retail investors who own 44%, while hedge funds hold 39%

Key Insights

• Significant control over Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha by retail investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• The top 6 shareholders own 51% of the company
• Institutional ownership in Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha is 15%

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If you want to know who really controls Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. (TSE:9107), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. We can see that retail investors own the lion's share in the company with 44% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And hedge funds on the other hand have a 39% ownership in the company.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha.

View our latest analysis for Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha?

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.

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

It would appear that 39% of Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha shares are controlled by hedge funds. That catches my attention because hedge funds sometimes try to influence management, or bring about changes that will create near term value for shareholders. Our data shows that Effissimo Capital Management Pte Ltd. is the largest shareholder with 39% of shares outstanding. Nomura Asset Management Co., Ltd. is the second largest shareholder owning 3.0% of common stock, and Imabari Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. holds about 2.7% of the company stock.

We did some more digging and found that 6 of the top shareholders account for roughly 51% of the register, implying that along with larger shareholders, there are a few smaller shareholders, thereby balancing out each others interests somewhat.

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 Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha

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.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

Our information suggests that Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. insiders own under 1% of the company. 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 JP¥1.2b worth of shares (at current prices). Arguably recent buying and selling is just as important to consider. You can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 44% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha better, we need to consider many other factors. Be aware that Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those can't be ignored...

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.