Yahoo Finance Cogstate Limited (ASX:CGS) most popular amongst individual investors who own 36%, insiders hold 35%
If you want to know who really controls Cogstate Limited (ASX:CGS), 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 36% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.
And individual insiders on the other hand have a 35% ownership in the company. Large companies usually have institutions as shareholders, and we usually see insiders owning shares in smaller companies.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Cogstate.
See our latest analysis for Cogstate
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Cogstate?
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.
Cogstate 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 Cogstate's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
Hedge funds don't have many shares in Cogstate. David Dolby is currently the largest shareholder, with 14% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 14% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 12% by the third-largest shareholder. Furthermore, CEO Bradley O'Connor is the owner of 2.5% of the company's shares.
To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 5 shareholders control more than half of the company which implies that this group has considerable sway over the company's decision-making.
Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.
Insider Ownership Of Cogstate
While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.
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.
It seems insiders own a significant proportion of Cogstate Limited. It has a market capitalization of just AU$317m, and insiders have AU$110m worth of shares in their own names. 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
With a 36% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Cogstate. 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.
Public Company Ownership
Public companies currently own 6.8% of Cogstate stock. This may be a strategic interest and the two companies may have related business interests. It could be that they have de-merged. This holding is probably worth investigating further.
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 1 warning sign for Cogstate that you should be aware of before investing here.
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.
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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.
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