While institutions invested in Kingstone Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:KINS) benefited from last week's 14% gain, retail investors stood to gain the most

Key Insights

• Significant control over Kingstone Companies by retail investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• A total of 25 investors have a majority stake in the company with 38% ownership
• Insiders own 14% of Kingstone Companies

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A look at the shareholders of Kingstone Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:KINS) can tell us which group is most powerful. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 55% to be precise, is retail investors. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

While retail investors were the group that reaped the most benefits after last week’s 14% price gain, institutions also received a 31% cut.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Kingstone Companies.

Check out our latest analysis for Kingstone Companies

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Kingstone Companies?

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.

Kingstone Companies already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Kingstone Companies' earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Kingstone Companies. The company's largest shareholder is Barry Goldstein, with ownership of 6.7%. With 3.8% and 3.4% of the shares outstanding respectively, Renaissance Technologies LLC and Griffin Highline Capital LLC are the second and third largest shareholders. Additionally, the company's CEO Meryl Golden directly holds 1.5% of the total shares outstanding.

Our studies suggest that the top 25 shareholders collectively control less than half of the company's shares, meaning that the company's shares are widely disseminated and there is no dominant shareholder.

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 is a little analyst coverage of the stock, but not much. So there is room for it to gain more coverage.

Insider Ownership Of Kingstone Companies

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.

Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Kingstone Companies, Inc.. Insiders own US$31m worth of shares in the US$231m 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

The general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 55% of Kingstone Companies shares. This level of ownership gives investors from the wider public some power to sway key policy decisions such as board composition, executive compensation, and the dividend payout ratio.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Kingstone Companies that you should be aware of before investing here.

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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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.