After losing 5.7% in the past year, Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR) institutional owners must be relieved by the recent gain

Key Insights

• Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, Whirlpool's stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions
• 50% of the business is held by the top 11 shareholders
• Analyst forecasts along with ownership data serve to give a strong idea about prospects for a business

We've discovered 4 warning signs about Whirlpool. View them for free.

If you want to know who really controls Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR), 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 institutions with 86% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Institutional investors would appreciate the 9.3% increase in share price last week, given their one-year losses have totalled a disappointing 5.7%.

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

Check out our latest analysis for Whirlpool

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Whirlpool?

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.

We can see that Whirlpool does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. 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 Whirlpool's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Institutional investors own over 50% of the company, so together than can probably strongly influence board decisions. Whirlpool is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that BlackRock, Inc. is the largest shareholder with 11% of shares outstanding. With 9.9% and 8.3% of the shares outstanding respectively, The Vanguard Group, Inc. and PRIMECAP Management Company are the second and third largest shareholders.

After doing some more digging, we found that the top 11 have the combined ownership of 50% in the company, suggesting that no single shareholder has significant control over the company.

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. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of Whirlpool

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 most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of Whirlpool Corporation. It's a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own US$39m 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

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 11% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. 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. Case in point: We've spotted 4 warning signs for Whirlpool you should be aware of, and 1 of them can't be ignored.

But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter 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.