Individual investors among VBI Vaccines Inc.'s (NASDAQ:VBIV) largest stockholders and were hit after last week's 6.7% price drop

A look at the shareholders of VBI Vaccines Inc. (NASDAQ:VBIV) can tell us which group is most powerful. We can see that individual investors own the lion's share in the company with 50% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And following last week's 6.7% decline in share price, individual investors suffered the most losses.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of VBI Vaccines, beginning with the chart below.

Check out our latest analysis for VBI Vaccines

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About VBI Vaccines?

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 VBI Vaccines. 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. 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 VBI Vaccines' historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

VBI Vaccines is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that Perceptive Advisors LLC is the largest shareholder with 21% of shares outstanding. Arch Venture Partners, L.P. is the second largest shareholder owning 5.1% of common stock, and BlackRock, Inc. holds about 5.0% of the company stock.

On studying our ownership data, we found that 25 of the top shareholders collectively own less than 50% of the share register, implying that no single individual has a majority interest.

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 a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of VBI Vaccines

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.

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 less than 1% of VBI Vaccines Inc.. It seems the board members have no more than US$3.7m worth of shares in the US$715m company. We generally like to see a board more invested. However it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

The general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 50% of VBI Vaccines shares. With this amount of ownership, retail investors can collectively play a role in decisions that affect shareholder returns, such as dividend policies and the appointment of directors. They can also exercise the power to vote on acquisitions or mergers that may not improve profitability.

Private Equity Ownership

Private equity firms hold a 26% stake in VBI Vaccines. This suggests they can be influential in key policy decisions. Some might like this, because private equity are sometimes activists who hold management accountable. But other times, private equity is selling out, having taking the company public.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand VBI Vaccines better, we need to consider many other factors. Case in point: We've spotted 4 warning signs for VBI Vaccines you should be aware of, and 1 of them makes us a bit uncomfortable.

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its 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.

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.

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