With 66% ownership of the shares, Northfield Bancorp, Inc. (Staten Island, NY) (NASDAQ:NFBK) is heavily dominated by institutional owners
Key Insights
Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, Northfield Bancorp (Staten Island NY)'s stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions
A total of 8 investors have a majority stake in the company with 51% ownership
Using data from analyst forecasts alongside ownership research, one can better assess the future performance of a company
To get a sense of who is truly in control of Northfield Bancorp, Inc. (Staten Island, NY) (NASDAQ:NFBK), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are institutions with 66% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).
Given the vast amount of money and research capacities at their disposal, institutional ownership tends to carry a lot of weight, especially with individual investors. As a result, a sizeable amount of institutional money invested in a firm is generally viewed as a positive attribute.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Northfield Bancorp (Staten Island NY).
See our latest analysis for Northfield Bancorp (Staten Island NY)
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Northfield Bancorp (Staten Island NY)?
Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices.
Northfield Bancorp (Staten Island NY) already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. 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 Northfield Bancorp (Staten Island NY), (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.
Investors should note that institutions actually own more than half the company, so they can collectively wield significant power. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Northfield Bancorp (Staten Island NY). The company's largest shareholder is BlackRock, Inc., with ownership of 15%. The Vanguard Group, Inc. is the second largest shareholder owning 10% of common stock, and Dimensional Fund Advisors LP holds about 8.2% of the company stock. In addition, we found that Steven Klein, the CEO has 1.2% of the shares allocated to their name.
On further inspection, we found that more than half the company's shares are owned by the top 8 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. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.
Insider Ownership Of Northfield Bancorp (Staten Island NY)
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.
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.
We can report that insiders do own shares in Northfield Bancorp, Inc. (Staten Island, NY). In their own names, insiders own US$21m worth of stock in the US$501m company. Some would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. But it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.
General Public Ownership
The general public-- including retail investors -- own 29% 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. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Northfield Bancorp (Staten Island NY) .
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.
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