Both private companies who control a good portion of Austevoll Seafood ASA (OB:AUSS) along with institutions must be dismayed after last week's 3.3% decrease

Key Insights

• Austevoll Seafood's significant private companies ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• 56% of the company is held by a single shareholder (Laco AS)
• Institutions own 22% of Austevoll Seafood

A look at the shareholders of Austevoll Seafood ASA (OB:AUSS) can tell us which group is most powerful. We can see that private companies own the lion's share in the company with 57% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Following a 3.3% decrease in the stock price last week, private companies suffered the most losses, but institutions who own 22% stock also took a hit.

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

See our latest analysis for Austevoll Seafood

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Austevoll Seafood?

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 Austevoll Seafood 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. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Austevoll Seafood's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Austevoll Seafood is not owned by hedge funds. Laco AS is currently the company's largest shareholder with 56% of shares outstanding. With such a huge stake in the ownership, we infer that they have significant control of the future of the company. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 4.5% and 1.9% of the stock.

While studying institutional ownership for a company can add value to your research, it is also a good practice to research analyst recommendations to get a deeper understand of a stock's expected performance. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of Austevoll Seafood

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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 less than 1% of Austevoll Seafood ASA. We do note, however, it is possible insiders have an indirect interest through a private company or other corporate structure. It's a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own kr4.2m worth of shares. 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, who are usually individual investors, hold a 21% stake in Austevoll Seafood. 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

It seems that Private Companies own 57%, of the Austevoll Seafood stock. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Be aware that Austevoll Seafood is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , you should know about...

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.