Yahoo Finance Eckert & Ziegler SE's (ETR:EUZ) top owners are individual investors with 35% stake, while 33% is held by institutions
Key Insights
The considerable ownership by individual investors in Eckert & Ziegler indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
50% of the business is held by the top 7 shareholders
To get a sense of who is truly in control of Eckert & Ziegler SE (ETR:EUZ), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual investors with 35% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.
Institutions, on the other hand, account for 33% of the company's stockholders. Large companies usually have institutions as shareholders, and we usually see insiders owning shares in smaller companies.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Eckert & Ziegler.
Check out our latest analysis for Eckert & Ziegler
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Eckert & Ziegler?
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.
Eckert & Ziegler 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 Eckert & Ziegler, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.
Eckert & Ziegler is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is Eckert Wagniskapital und Frühphasenfinanzierung GmbH, with ownership of 32%. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 5.1% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 3.3% by the third-largest shareholder.
On further inspection, we found that more than half the company's shares are owned by the top 7 shareholders, suggesting that the interests of the larger shareholders are balanced out to an extent by the smaller ones.
While studying institutional ownership for a company can add value to your research, it is also a good practice to research analyst recommendations to get a deeper understand of a stock's expected performance. While there is some analyst coverage, the company is probably not widely covered. So it could gain more attention, down the track.
Insider Ownership Of Eckert & Ziegler
While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.
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 information suggests that Eckert & Ziegler SE insiders own under 1% of the company. It seems the board members have no more than €149 worth of shares in the €775m 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-- including retail investors -- own 35% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.
Private Equity Ownership
With an ownership of 32%, private equity firms are in a position to play a role in shaping corporate strategy with a focus on value creation. 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:
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.
I like to dive deeper into how a company has performed in the past. You can find historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph.
If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts.
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.
