CapitaLand India Trust's (SGX:CY6U) market cap touched S$1.5b last week, benefiting both retail investors who own 44% as well as institutions

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by retail investors in CapitaLand India Trust indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• A total of 15 investors have a majority stake in the company with 51% ownership
• Institutional ownership in CapitaLand India Trust is 38%

A look at the shareholders of CapitaLand India Trust (SGX:CY6U) can tell us which group is most powerful. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are retail investors with 44% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Retail investors gained the most after market cap touched S$1.5b last week, while institutions who own 38% also benefitted.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of CapitaLand India Trust.

View our latest analysis for CapitaLand India Trust

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About CapitaLand India Trust?

Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices.

We can see that CapitaLand India Trust does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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 CapitaLand India Trust's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in CapitaLand India Trust. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Bartley Investments Pte. Ltd. with 17% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 6.7% and 4.3%, of the shares outstanding, respectively.

Looking at the shareholder registry, we can see that 51% of the ownership is controlled by the top 15 shareholders, meaning that no single shareholder has a majority interest in the ownership.

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 are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of CapitaLand India Trust

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.

Our data suggests that insiders own under 1% of CapitaLand India Trust in their own names. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. It's a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own S$7.0m worth of shares. It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

With a 44% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over CapitaLand India Trust. 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

We can see that Private Companies own 17%, of the shares on issue. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand CapitaLand India Trust better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 5 warning signs with CapitaLand India Trust (at least 1 which is significant) , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

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.