Positive week for ArcticZymes Technologies ASA (OB:AZT) institutional investors who lost 58% over the past year

Key Insights

• Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, ArcticZymes Technologies' stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions
• The top 11 shareholders own 51% of the company
• Past performance of a company along with ownership data serve to give a strong idea about prospects for a business

A look at the shareholders of ArcticZymes Technologies ASA (OB:AZT) can tell us which group is most powerful. We can see that institutions own the lion's share in the company with 56% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Last week's kr158m market cap gain would probably be appreciated by institutional investors, especially after a year of 58% losses.

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

See our latest analysis for ArcticZymes Technologies

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About ArcticZymes Technologies?

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.

ArcticZymes Technologies already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. 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 ArcticZymes Technologies, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Since institutional investors own more than half the issued stock, the board will likely have to pay attention to their preferences. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in ArcticZymes Technologies. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, Private Banking, Investment Banking, and Insurance Arm is currently the company's largest shareholder with 10.0% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 7.6% and 5.2%, of the shares outstanding, respectively.

Looking at the shareholder registry, we can see that 51% of the ownership is controlled by the top 11 shareholders, meaning that no single shareholder has a majority interest in the ownership.

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 is some analyst coverage of the stock, but it could still become more well known, with time.

Insider Ownership Of ArcticZymes Technologies

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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 most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in ArcticZymes Technologies ASA. As individuals, the insiders collectively own kr30m worth of the kr1.5b company. Some would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board, though we generally prefer to see bigger insider holdings. But it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 28% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over ArcticZymes Technologies. 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 13%, of the ArcticZymes Technologies 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:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand ArcticZymes Technologies better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for ArcticZymes Technologies that you should be aware of.

If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts.

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.