Both individual investors who control a good portion of Poseida Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSTX) along with institutions must be dismayed after last week's 15% decrease
To get a sense of who is truly in control of Poseida Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSTX), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual investors with 36% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.
While institutions who own 25% came under pressure after market cap dropped to US$304m last week,individual investors took the most losses.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Poseida Therapeutics.
Check out our latest analysis for Poseida Therapeutics
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Poseida Therapeutics?
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.
We can see that Poseida Therapeutics does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. 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 Poseida Therapeutics' earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
It would appear that 6.0% of Poseida Therapeutics 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. Malin Corporation plc is currently the company's largest shareholder with 14% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 11% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 7.2% by the third-largest shareholder. Eric Ostertag, who is the third-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Chairman of the Board.
We also observed that the top 6 shareholders account for more than half of the share register, with a few smaller shareholders to balance the interests of the larger ones to a certain extent.
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 a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.
Insider Ownership Of Poseida Therapeutics
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.
Shareholders would probably be interested to learn that insiders own shares in Poseida Therapeutics, Inc.. In their own names, insiders own US$22m worth of stock in the US$304m company. This shows at least some alignment. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.
General Public Ownership
The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 36% stake in Poseida Therapeutics. 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 4.1%, of the shares on issue. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.
Public Company Ownership
We can see that public companies hold 21% of the Poseida Therapeutics shares on issue. It's hard to say for sure but this suggests they have entwined business interests. This might be a strategic stake, so it's worth watching this space for changes in ownership.
Next Steps:
While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. For example, we've discovered 5 warning signs for Poseida Therapeutics (3 are a bit concerning!) that you should be aware of before investing here.
If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts.
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.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
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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