Individual investors who have a significant stake must be disappointed along with institutions after Fugro N.V.'s (AMS:FUR) market cap dropped by €45m

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by individual investors in Fugro indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• The top 25 shareholders own 46% of the company
• Insiders have been buying lately

This technology could replace computers: discover the 20 stocks are working to make quantum computing a reality.

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Fugro N.V. (AMS:FUR), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. With 54% stake, individual 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.

While institutions who own 43% came under pressure after market cap dropped to €1.3b last week,individual investors took the most losses.

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

View our latest analysis for Fugro

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Fugro?

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.

Fugro 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. 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 Fugro, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Fugro is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is NN Group N.V, Asset Management Arm with 15% of shares outstanding. The Vanguard Group, Inc. is the second largest shareholder owning 3.9% of common stock, and H. van Heijst holds about 3.2% of the company stock.

A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 25 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where 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 Fugro

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.

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 most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in Fugro N.V.. The insiders have a meaningful stake worth €47m. Most would see this as a real positive. Most would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. Still, it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a substantial 54% stake in Fugro, suggesting it is a fairly popular stock. This level of ownership gives investors from the wider public some power to sway key policy decisions such as board composition, executive compensation, and the dividend payout ratio.

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. Take risks for example - Fugro has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.