Yahoo Finance Is Warrego Energy Limited's (ASX:WGO) Shareholder Ownership Skewed Towards Insiders?
Every investor in Warrego Energy Limited (ASX:WGO) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. Large companies usually have institutions as shareholders, and we usually see insiders owning shares in smaller companies. I quite like to see at least a little bit of insider ownership. As Charlie Munger said 'Show me the incentive and I will show you the outcome.
Warrego Energy is not a large company by global standards. It has a market capitalization of AU$171m, which means it wouldn't have the attention of many institutional investors. Taking a look at our data on the ownership groups (below), it seems that institutions are not really that prevalent on the share registry. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Warrego Energy.
View our latest analysis for Warrego Energy
What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Warrego Energy?
Small companies that are not very actively traded often lack institutional investors, but it's less common to see large companies without them.
There are multiple explanations for why institutions don't own a stock. The most common is that the company is too small relative to funds under management, so the institution does not bother to look closely at the company. It is also possible that fund managers don't own the stock because they aren't convinced it will perform well. Institutional investors may not find the historic growth of the business impressive, or there might be other factors at play. You can see the past revenue performance of Warrego Energy, for yourself, below.
It would appear that 6.7% of Warrego Energy shares are controlled by hedge funds. That's interesting, because hedge funds can be quite active and activist. Many look for medium term catalysts that will drive the share price higher. Our data shows that Duncan MacNiven is the largest shareholder with 12% of shares outstanding. With 12% and 7.6% of the shares outstanding respectively, Dennis Donald and Strike Energy Limited are the second and third largest shareholders. Dennis Donald, who is the second-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Chief Executive Officer.
Looking at the shareholder registry, we can see that 50% of the ownership is controlled by the top 11 shareholders, meaning that no single shareholder has a majority interest in the ownership.
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. There is some analyst coverage of the stock, but it could still become more well known, with time.
Insider Ownership Of Warrego Energy
While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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.
It seems insiders own a significant proportion of Warrego Energy Limited. It has a market capitalization of just AU$171m, and insiders have AU$58m worth of shares in their own names. This may suggest that the founders still own a lot of shares. You can click here to see if they have been buying or selling.
General Public Ownership
With a 49% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Warrego Energy. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.
Public Company Ownership
It appears to us that public companies own 7.6% of Warrego Energy. 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. Take risks for example - Warrego Energy has 4 warning signs (and 1 which can't be ignored) we think you should know about.
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.
