What Type Of Shareholders Own The Most Number of Laird Superfood, Inc. (NYSEMKT:LSF) Shares?

Every investor in Laird Superfood, Inc. (NYSEMKT:LSF) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. Generally speaking, as a company grows, institutions will increase their ownership. Conversely, insiders often decrease their ownership over time. I quite like to see at least a little bit of insider ownership. As Charlie Munger said 'Show me the incentive and I will show you the outcome.

Laird Superfood is not a large company by global standards. It has a market capitalization of US$389m, which means it wouldn't have the attention of many institutional investors. Taking a look at our data on the ownership groups (below), it seems that institutions are noticeable on the share registry. We can zoom in on the different ownership groups, to learn more about Laird Superfood.

See our latest analysis for Laird Superfood

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Laird Superfood?

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 Laird Superfood does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. 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 Laird Superfood, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Laird Superfood is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that FMR LLC is the largest shareholder with 9.7% of shares outstanding. Danone Manifesto Ventures is the second largest shareholder owning 9.7% of common stock, and Thomas Wetherald holds about 8.1% of the company stock. Thomas Wetherald, who is the third-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Member of the Board of Directors. Furthermore, CEO Paul Hodge is the owner of 3.0% of the company's shares.

Looking at the shareholder registry, we can see that 50% of the ownership is controlled by the top 11 shareholders, meaning that no single shareholder has a majority interest in the ownership.

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 Laird Superfood

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 information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Laird Superfood, Inc.. Insiders own US$84m worth of shares in the US$389m company. It is great to see insiders so invested in the business. It might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

With a 35% ownership, the general public have some degree of sway over Laird Superfood. 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 Equity Ownership

With a stake of 9.7%, private equity firms could influence the Laird Superfood board. Some investors might be encouraged by this, since private equity are sometimes able to encourage strategies that help the market see the value in the company. Alternatively, those holders might be exiting the investment after taking it public.

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. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for Laird Superfood that 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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