Yahoo Finance Krones AG's (ETR:KRN) top holders are insiders and they are likely disappointed by the recent 5.6% drop
Key Insights
Insiders appear to have a vested interest in Krones' growth, as seen by their sizeable ownership
The top 2 shareholders own 52% of the company
If you want to know who really controls Krones AG (ETR:KRN), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual insiders with 37% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).
As a result, insiders as a group endured the highest losses after market cap fell by €221m.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Krones.
See our latest analysis for Krones
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Krones?
Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.
We can see that Krones 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. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Krones' historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.
Krones is not owned by hedge funds. Volker Kronseder is currently the company's largest shareholder with 37% of shares outstanding. With 15% and 3.0% of the shares outstanding respectively, VMAX Familienstiftung and Tweedy, Browne Company LLC are the second and third largest shareholders.
A more detailed study of the shareholder registry showed us that 2 of the top shareholders have a considerable amount of ownership in the company, via their 52% stake.
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 are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.
Insider Ownership Of Krones
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 Krones AG. It is very interesting to see that insiders have a meaningful €1.4b stake in this €3.7b business. It is good to see this level of investment. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.
General Public Ownership
The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 26% stake in Krones. 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 Company Ownership
It seems that Private Companies own 15%, of the Krones stock. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company.
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. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Krones you should know about.
Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.
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.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
