In the wake of Eastman Kodak Company's (NYSE:KODK) latest US$79m market cap drop, institutional owners may be forced to take severe actions

Every investor in Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE:KODK) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are institutions with 50% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And institutional investors saw their holdings value drop by 14% last week. The recent loss, which adds to a one-year loss of 17% for stockholders, may not sit well with this group of investors. Often called “market makers”, institutions wield significant power in influencing the price dynamics of any stock. As a result, if the decline continues, institutional investors may be pressured to sell Eastman Kodak which might hurt individual investors.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Eastman Kodak.

View our latest analysis for Eastman Kodak

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Eastman Kodak?

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.

Eastman Kodak 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. 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 Eastman Kodak, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Eastman Kodak is not owned by hedge funds. Southeastern Asset Management, Inc. is currently the company's largest shareholder with 12% of shares outstanding. With 5.7% and 5.1% of the shares outstanding respectively, George Karfunkel and BlackRock, Inc. are the second and third largest shareholders. Furthermore, CEO James Continenza is the owner of 1.1% of the company's shares.

A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 14 shareholders have a combined ownership of 51% implying that no single shareholder has a majority.

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. We're not picking up on any analyst coverage of the stock at the moment, so the company is unlikely to be widely held.

Insider Ownership Of Eastman Kodak

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.

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.

Shareholders would probably be interested to learn that insiders own shares in Eastman Kodak Company. As individuals, the insiders collectively own US$36m worth of the US$451m company. Some would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. But it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 39% stake in Eastman Kodak. 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 Company Ownership

We can see that Private Companies own 3.4%, of the shares on issue. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company.

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. Be aware that Eastman Kodak is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis , you should know about...

Of course this may not be the best stock to buy. Therefore, you may wish to see our free collection of interesting prospects boasting favorable financials.

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.