Private companies who have a significant stake must be disappointed along with institutions after Galp Energia, SGPS, S.A.'s (ELI:GALP) market cap dropped by €850m

Key Insights

• Significant control over Galp Energia SGPS by private companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• A total of 4 investors have a majority stake in the company with 52% ownership
• 31% of Galp Energia SGPS is held by Institutions

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Galp Energia, SGPS, S.A. (ELI:GALP), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 44% to be precise, is private companies. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Following a 6.1% decrease in the stock price last week, private companies suffered the most losses, but institutions who own 31% stock also took a hit.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Galp Energia SGPS.

View our latest analysis for Galp Energia SGPS

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Galp Energia SGPS?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Galp Energia SGPS. 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. 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 Galp Energia SGPS' historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Galp Energia SGPS is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is Amorim Energia B.V., with ownership of 36%. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 8.1% and 4.6%, of the shares outstanding, respectively.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 4 shareholders control more than half of the company which implies that this group has considerable sway over the company's decision-making.

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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Galp Energia SGPS

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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.

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.

We note our data does not show any board members holding shares, personally. Not all jurisdictions have the same rules around disclosing insider ownership, and it is possible we have missed something, here. So you can click here learn more about the CEO.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 24% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. 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

It seems that Private Companies own 44%, of the Galp Energia SGPS 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:

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 - Galp Energia SGPS has 2 warning signs (and 1 which is concerning) we think 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.