Besqab AB (publ)’s (STO:BESQ) market cap dropped kr207m last week; individual investors who hold 36% were hit as were institutions

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Besqab AB (publ) (STO:BESQ), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are private companies with 36% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

While the holdings of private companies took a hit after last week’s 16% price drop, institutions with their 27% holdings also suffered.

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

Check out our latest analysis for Besqab

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Besqab?

Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it’s included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.

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

Hedge funds don’t have many shares in Besqab. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Skirner AB with 36% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 7.5% and 7.0% of the stock.

A more detailed study of the shareholder registry showed us that 3 of the top shareholders have a considerable amount of ownership in the company, via their 50% stake.

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

Insider Ownership Of Besqab

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.

Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Besqab AB (publ). Insiders own kr251m worth of shares in the kr1.1b 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– including retail investors — own 14% stake in the company, and hence can’t easily be ignored. 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 36%, 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. For example, we’ve discovered 6 warning signs for Besqab (3 are significant!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

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.