Bit Digital, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:BTBT) 14% loss last week hit both individual investors who own 50% as well as institutions

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by individual investors in Bit Digital indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
• A total of 25 investors have a majority stake in the company with 28% ownership
• Insiders have been buying lately

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If you want to know who really controls Bit Digital, Inc. (NASDAQ:BTBT), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. 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.

While the holdings of individual investors took a hit after last week’s 14% price drop, institutions with their 23% holdings also suffered.

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

View our latest analysis for Bit Digital

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Bit Digital?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Bit Digital. 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. 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 Bit Digital's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Bit Digital is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is BlackRock, Inc., with ownership of 5.0%. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 2.3% and 2.3% of the stock. Furthermore, CEO Samir Tabar is the owner of 0.6% of the company's shares.

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 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 Bit Digital

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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 data suggests that insiders own under 1% of Bit Digital, Inc. in their own names. It appears that the board holds about US$2.5m worth of stock. This compares to a market capitalization of US$570m. 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, who are usually individual investors, hold a substantial 50% stake in Bit Digital, suggesting it is a fairly popular stock. This size of ownership gives investors from the general public some collective power. They can and probably do influence decisions on executive compensation, dividend policies and proposed business acquisitions.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for Bit Digital you should be aware of.

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.