Yahoo Finance Okta, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:OKTA) institutional investors lost 6.3% over the past week but have profited from longer-term gains
Key Insights
Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, Okta's stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions
The top 20 shareholders own 50% of the company
Ownership research along with analyst forecasts data help provide a good understanding of opportunities in a stock
A look at the shareholders of Okta, Inc. (NASDAQ:OKTA) can tell us which group is most powerful. With 80% stake, institutions possess the maximum shares in the company. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).
Losing money on investments is something no shareholder enjoys, least of all institutional investors who saw their holdings value drop by 6.3% last week. However, the 40% one-year return to shareholders may have helped lessen their pain. We would assume however, that they would be on the lookout for weakness in the future.
Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Okta, beginning with the chart below.
Check out our latest analysis for Okta
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Okta?
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.
We can see that Okta does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. 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 Okta's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
Institutional investors own over 50% of the company, so together than can probably strongly influence board decisions. Okta is not owned by hedge funds. The Vanguard Group, Inc. is currently the largest shareholder, with 9.2% of shares outstanding. FMR LLC is the second largest shareholder owning 7.4% of common stock, and BlackRock, Inc. holds about 5.5% of the company stock. In addition, we found that Todd McKinnon, the CEO has 3.5% of the shares allocated to their name.
Looking at the shareholder registry, we can see that 50% of the ownership is controlled by the top 20 shareholders, meaning that no single shareholder has a majority interest in the ownership.
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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.
Insider Ownership Of Okta
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.
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 most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in Okta, Inc.. Insiders own US$686m worth of shares (at current prices). Most would say this shows a good alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. Still, it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.
General Public Ownership
The general public-- including retail investors -- own 15% 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.
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. Take risks for example - Okta has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.
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.
