Individual investors account for 43% of Fresenius SE & Co. KGaA's (ETR:FRE) ownership, while institutions account for 30%
Key Insights
Significant control over Fresenius SE KGaA by individual investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
49% of the business is held by the top 25 shareholders
A look at the shareholders of Fresenius SE & Co. KGaA (ETR:FRE) can tell us which group is most powerful. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 43% to be precise, is individual investors. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).
Meanwhile, institutions make up 30% of the company’s shareholders. Insiders often own a large chunk of younger, smaller, companies while huge companies tend to have institutions as shareholders.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Fresenius SE KGaA.
View our latest analysis for Fresenius SE KGaA
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Fresenius SE KGaA?
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.
As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Fresenius SE KGaA. 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 Fresenius SE KGaA's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.
We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Fresenius SE KGaA. The company's largest shareholder is Else Kroner-Fresenius Foundation, Endowment Arm, with ownership of 27%. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 3.0% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 2.9% by the third-largest shareholder.
A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 25 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where no single shareholder has a majority.
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 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 Fresenius SE KGaA
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.
I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.
We note our data does not show any board members holding shares, personally. Given we are not picking up on insider ownership, we may have missing data. Therefore, it would be interesting to assess the CEO compensation and tenure, here.
General Public Ownership
The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 43% stake in Fresenius SE KGaA. 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:
It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Fresenius SE KGaA better, we need to consider many other factors. Be aware that Fresenius SE KGaA is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis , you should know about...
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.
