Great week for Pulse Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLSE) insiders who have 70% stake and they haven’t stopped buying

Key Insights

• Insiders appear to have a vested interest in Pulse Biosciences' growth, as seen by their sizeable ownership
• Robert Duggan owns 68% of the company
• Insiders have bought recently

Every investor in Pulse Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLSE) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. We can see that individual insiders own the lion's share in the company with 70% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

Insiders who purchased recently should be particularly happy after the stock gained 16% in the past week.

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

View our latest analysis for Pulse Biosciences

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Pulse Biosciences?

Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.

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

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Pulse Biosciences. From our data, we infer that the largest shareholder is Robert Duggan (who also holds the title of Top Key Executive) with 68% of shares outstanding. Its usually considered a good sign when insiders own a significant number of shares in the company, and in this case, we're glad to see a company insider play the role of a key stakeholder. BlackRock, Inc. is the second largest shareholder owning 1.9% of common stock, and Bank of America Corporation, Asset Management Arm holds about 1.5% of the company stock.

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. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known.

Insider Ownership Of Pulse Biosciences

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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 information suggests that insiders own more than half of Pulse Biosciences, Inc.. This gives them effective control of the company. So they have a US$380m stake in this US$547m business. Most would argue this is a positive, showing strong alignment with shareholders. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 21% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Pulse Biosciences. 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. For example, we've discovered 4 warning signs for Pulse Biosciences (2 are a bit unpleasant!) 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.