private companies who own 45% along with institutions invested in Ework Group AB (publ) (STO:EWRK) saw increase in their holdings value last week

Key Insights

• Significant control over Ework Group by private companies implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• A total of 2 investors have a majority stake in the company with 59% ownership
• Institutions own 34% of Ework Group

If you want to know who really controls Ework Group AB (publ) (STO:EWRK), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are private companies with 45% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Private companies gained the most after market cap touched kr2.5b last week, while institutions who own 34% also benefitted.

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

See our latest analysis for Ework Group

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Ework Group?

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 Ework Group. 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. 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 Ework Group's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Ework Group is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that Investment AB Arawak is the largest shareholder with 40% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 20% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 5.4% by the third-largest shareholder. Furthermore, CEO Karin Schreil is the owner of 1.5% of the company's shares.

After doing some more digging, we found that the top 2 shareholders collectively control more than half of the company's shares, implying that they have considerable power to influence the company's decisions.

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. There is a little analyst coverage of the stock, but not much. So there is room for it to gain more coverage.

Insider Ownership Of Ework Group

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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 most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in Ework Group AB (publ). As individuals, the insiders collectively own kr87m worth of the kr2.5b company. This shows at least some alignment. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 18% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Ework Group. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 45%, of the company's shares. 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 Ework Group better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks for example - Ework Group has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

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.