IMC S.A.'s (WSE:IMC) Top Key Executive Oleksandr Petrov is the most upbeat insider, and their holdings increased by 17% last week

Key Insights

• IMC's significant insider ownership suggests inherent interests in company's expansion
• Oleksandr Petrov owns 76% of the company
• Using data from company's past performance alongside ownership research, one can better assess the future performance of a company

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To get a sense of who is truly in control of IMC S.A. (WSE:IMC), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual insiders with 82% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

As a result, insiders were the biggest beneficiaries of last week’s 17% gain.

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

See our latest analysis for IMC

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About IMC?

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.

Since institutions own only a small portion of IMC, many may not have spent much time considering the stock. But it's clear that some have; and they liked it enough to buy in. So if the company itself can improve over time, we may well see more institutional buyers in the future. When multiple institutional investors want to buy shares, we often see a rising share price. The past revenue trajectory (shown below) can be an indication of future growth, but there are no guarantees.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in IMC. From our data, we infer that the largest shareholder is Oleksandr Petrov (who also holds the title of Top Key Executive) with 76% of shares outstanding. Its usually considered a good sign when insiders own a significant number of shares in the company, and in this case, we're glad to see a company insider play the role of a key stakeholder. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 5.6% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 4.6% by the third-largest shareholder. Interestingly, the second-largest shareholder, Alex Lissitsa is also Top Key Executive, again, pointing towards strong insider ownership amongst the company's top shareholders.

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. While there is some analyst coverage, the company is probably not widely covered. So it could gain more attention, down the track.

Insider Ownership Of IMC

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 insiders own more than half of IMC S.A.. This gives them effective control of the company. So they have a zł853m stake in this zł1.0b business. It is good to see this level of investment. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 14% stake in IMC. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. To that end, you should learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with IMC (including 1 which is significant) .

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.