Both individual investors who control a good portion of Nordic Mining ASA (OB:NOM) along with institutions must be dismayed after last week's 10% decrease

Key Insights

• Nordic Mining's significant individual investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• The top 4 shareholders own 50% of the company
• Institutional ownership in Nordic Mining is 32%

A look at the shareholders of Nordic Mining ASA (OB:NOM) can tell us which group is most powerful. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 33% to be precise, is individual investors. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

While institutions, who own 32% shares weren’t spared from last week’s kr299m market cap drop, individual investors as a group suffered the maximum losses

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Nordic Mining.

Check out our latest analysis for Nordic Mining

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Nordic Mining?

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 Nordic Mining does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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 Nordic Mining's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Nordic Mining. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Fjordavegen Holding As with 15% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 15% and 11% of the stock.

Our research also brought to light the fact that roughly 50% of the company is controlled by the top 4 shareholders suggesting that these owners wield significant influence on the business.

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. We're not picking up on any analyst coverage of the stock at the moment, so the company is unlikely to be widely held.

Insider Ownership Of Nordic Mining

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.

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 Nordic Mining ASA insiders own under 1% of the company. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. It has a market capitalization of just kr2.6b, and the board has only kr24m worth of shares in their own names. Many investors in smaller companies prefer to see the board more heavily invested. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 33% stake in Nordic Mining. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 19%, of the company's shares. 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 15% of Nordic Mining 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:

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 Nordic Mining is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , you should know about...

If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, backed by strong financial data.

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.