While institutions invested in Integral Ad Science Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:IAS) benefited from last week's 6.7% gain, private equity firms stood to gain the most
Key Insights
The considerable ownership by private equity firms in Integral Ad Science Holding indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy
Vista Equity Partners Management, LLC owns 53% of the company
If you want to know who really controls Integral Ad Science Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:IAS), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. We can see that private equity firms own the lion's share in the company with 68% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).
Following a 6.7% increase in the stock price last week, private equity firms profited the most, but institutions who own 21% stock also stood to gain from the increase.
Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Integral Ad Science Holding, beginning with the chart below.
View our latest analysis for Integral Ad Science Holding
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Integral Ad Science Holding?
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 Integral Ad Science Holding. 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. 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 Integral Ad Science Holding's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.
Hedge funds don't have many shares in Integral Ad Science Holding. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Vista Equity Partners Management, LLC with 53% of shares outstanding. This implies that they have majority interest control of the future of the company. With 15% and 3.5% of the shares outstanding respectively, Accomplice Management LLC and The Vanguard Group, Inc. are the second and third largest shareholders.
While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.
Insider Ownership Of Integral Ad Science Holding
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. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves.
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.
Our most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of Integral Ad Science Holding Corp.. Keep in mind that it's a big company, and the insiders own US$13m worth of shares. The absolute value might be more important than the proportional share. 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, who are usually individual investors, hold a 10% stake in Integral Ad Science Holding. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders.
Private Equity Ownership
With a stake of 68%, private equity firms could influence the Integral Ad Science Holding board. Some might like this, because private equity are sometimes activists who hold management accountable. But other times, private equity is selling out, having taking the company public.
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. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with Integral Ad Science Holding , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
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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