Yahoo Finance Bell Financial Group Limited's (ASX:BFG) largest shareholders are private companies with 54% ownership, individual investors own 35%
Key Insights
The considerable ownership by private companies in Bell Financial Group indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
The top 4 shareholders own 52% of the company
Every investor in Bell Financial Group Limited (ASX:BFG) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. We can see that private companies own the lion's share in the company with 54% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).
Individual investors, on the other hand, account for 35% of the company's stockholders.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Bell Financial Group.
View our latest analysis for Bell Financial Group
What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Bell Financial Group?
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 many reasons why a company might not have any institutions on the share registry. It may be hard for institutions to buy large amounts of shares, if liquidity (the amount of shares traded each day) is low. If the company has not needed to raise capital, institutions might lack the opportunity to build a position. Alternatively, there might be something about the company that has kept institutional investors away. 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 Bell Financial Group, for yourself, below.
Bell Financial Group is not owned by hedge funds. Bell Group Holdings Pty Limited is currently the company's largest shareholder with 46% of shares outstanding. With 2.1% and 2.0% of the shares outstanding respectively, Dcm Bluelake Partners Pty Ltd and Estate Of James Gordon Moffatt are the second and third largest shareholders.
Our research also brought to light the fact that roughly 52% of the company is controlled by the top 4 shareholders suggesting that these owners wield significant influence on the business.
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 is some analyst coverage of the stock, but it could still become more well known, with time.
Insider Ownership Of Bell Financial Group
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.
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 information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Bell Financial Group Limited. Insiders have a AU$45m stake in this AU$417m business. 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 35% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.
Private Company Ownership
We can see that Private Companies own 54%, of the shares on issue. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company.
Next Steps:
It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Bell Financial Group better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Bell Financial Group that 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.
