Insiders remain on top despite recent sales, own 69% of Priority Technology Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRTH)

Key Insights

• Insiders appear to have a vested interest in Priority Technology Holdings' growth, as seen by their sizeable ownership
• The largest shareholder of the company is Thomas Priore with a 60% stake
• Insiders have been selling lately

A look at the shareholders of Priority Technology Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRTH) can tell us which group is most powerful. With 69% stake, individual insiders possess the maximum shares in the company. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Even though insiders have sold shares recently, the group owns the most numbers of shares in the company and as a result benefitted the most after market cap rose US$89m last week.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Priority Technology Holdings.

Check out our latest analysis for Priority Technology Holdings

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Priority Technology Holdings?

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.

Priority Technology Holdings already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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 Priority Technology Holdings' historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

It would appear that 5.7% of Priority Technology Holdings shares are controlled by hedge funds. That's interesting, because hedge funds can be quite active and activist. Many look for medium term catalysts that will drive the share price higher. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is the CEO Thomas Priore with 60% of shares outstanding. This essentially means that they have significant control over the outcome or future of the company, which is why insider ownership is usually looked upon favourably by prospective buyers. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 5.7% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 5.3% by the third-largest shareholder. Interestingly, the third-largest shareholder, John Priore is also a Member of the Board of Directors, again, indicating strong insider ownership amongst the company's top shareholders.

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

Insider Ownership Of Priority Technology Holdings

The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. 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.

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 the majority of Priority Technology Holdings, Inc.. This means they can collectively make decisions for the company. That means they own US$603m worth of shares in the US$880m company. That's quite meaningful. It is good to see this level of investment. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 20% stake in Priority Technology Holdings. 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.

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. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for Priority Technology Holdings you should be aware of, and 1 of them is significant.

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.