Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) most popular amongst retail investors who own 52% of the shares, institutions hold 28%
Key Insights
Oak Valley Bancorp's significant retail investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
A total of 25 investors have a majority stake in the company with 40% ownership
If you want to know who really controls Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY), 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 retail investors with 52% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).
Meanwhile, institutions make up 28% of the company’s shareholders. Institutions often own shares in more established companies, while it's not unusual to see insiders own a fair bit of smaller companies.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Oak Valley Bancorp.
See our latest analysis for Oak Valley Bancorp
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Oak Valley Bancorp?
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.
As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Oak Valley Bancorp. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. 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 Oak Valley Bancorp's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
Oak Valley Bancorp is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is Siena Capital Partners GP, LLC, with ownership of 4.4%. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 3.8% and 2.7% of the stock. Christopher Courtney, who is the third-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Member of the Board of Directors.
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. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known.
Insider Ownership Of Oak Valley Bancorp
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. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.
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 most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Oak Valley Bancorp. Insiders own US$41m worth of shares in the US$212m company. This may suggest that the founders still own a lot of shares. You can click here to see if they have been buying or selling.
General Public Ownership
The general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 52% of Oak Valley Bancorp 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:
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 1 warning sign for Oak Valley Bancorp that you should be aware of before investing here.
If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, backed by strong financial data.
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.
