iA Financial Corporation Inc. (TSE:IAG) most popular amongst retail investors who own 57% of the shares, institutions hold 43%
Key Insights
The considerable ownership by retail investors in iA Financial indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
A total of 25 investors have a majority stake in the company with 35% ownership
Institutions own 43% of iA Financial
If you want to know who really controls iA Financial Corporation Inc. (TSE:IAG), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. We can see that retail investors own the lion's share in the company with 57% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.
And institutions on the other hand have a 43% ownership in the company. Generally speaking, as a company grows, institutions will increase their ownership. Conversely, insiders often decrease their ownership over time.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about iA Financial.
Check out our latest analysis for iA Financial
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About iA Financial?
Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.
We can see that iA Financial 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 iA Financial's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
iA Financial is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec with 10% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 3.8% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 2.4% by the third-largest shareholder.
Our studies suggest that the top 25 shareholders collectively control less than half of the company's shares, meaning that the company's shares are widely disseminated and there is no dominant shareholder.
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 are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.
Insider Ownership Of iA Financial
The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. 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.
Our information suggests that iA Financial Corporation Inc. insiders own under 1% of the company. It's a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own CA$12m worth of shares. It is always good to see at least some insider ownership, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.
General Public Ownership
The general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 57% of iA Financial shares. This size of ownership gives investors from the general public some collective power. They can and probably do influence decisions on executive compensation, dividend policies and proposed business acquisitions.
Next Steps:
It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand iA Financial better, we need to consider many other factors. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for iA Financial (1 is potentially serious!) that you should be aware of before investing here.
But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter 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.
