Luka Koper d.d.'s (LJSE:LKPG) market cap surged €56m last week, state or government who have a lot riding on the company were rewarded

Key Insights

• Luka Koper d.d's significant state or government ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• Slovenia owns 51% of the company
• Ownership research, combined with past performance data can help provide a good understanding of opportunities in a stock

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Luka Koper d.d. (LJSE:LKPG), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. We can see that state or government own the lion's share in the company with 54% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

As a result, state or government were the biggest beneficiaries of last week’s 10.0% gain.

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

Check out our latest analysis for Luka Koper d.d

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Luka Koper d.d?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Luka Koper d.d. 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 Luka Koper d.d, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Luka Koper d.d is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is Slovenia, with ownership of 51%. With such a huge stake in the ownership, we infer that they have significant control of the future of the company. Slovenian Sovereign Holding, d.d. is the second largest shareholder owning 11% of common stock, and Kapitalska družba pokojninskega in invalidskega zavarovanja, d. d. holds about 5.0% of the company stock.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known.

Insider Ownership Of Luka Koper d.d

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.

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 Luka Koper d.d. insiders own under 1% of the company. It seems the board members have no more than €792 worth of shares in the €616m company. Many tend to prefer to see a board with bigger shareholdings. A good next step might be to take a look at this free summary of insider buying and selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 26% stake in Luka Koper d.d. 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.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Luka Koper d.d better, we need to consider many other factors. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Luka Koper d.d that you should be aware of before investing here.

Of course this may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free free list of interesting companies.

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.