Why NetSol Technologies Inc’s (NTWK) Ownership Structure Is Important
Today, I will be analyzing NetSol Technologies Inc’s (NASDAQ:NTWK) recent ownership structure, an important but not-so-popular subject among individual investors. When it comes to ownership structure of a company, the impact has been observed in both the long-and short-term performance of shares. Differences in ownership structure of companies can have a profound effect on how management’s incentives are aligned with shareholder returns, which is why we’ll take a moment to analyse NTWK’s shareholder registry. All data provided is as of the most recent financial year end.
Check out our latest analysis for NetSol Technologies
Institutional Ownership
NTWK’s 12.12% institutional ownership seems enough to cause large share price movements in the case of significant share sell-off or acquisitions by institutions, particularly when there is a low level of public shares available on the market to trade. These moves, at least in the short-term, are generally observed in an institutional ownership mix comprising of active stock pickers, in particular levered hedge funds, which can cause large price swings. Considering hedge funds hold a stake of 8.03% in the company, NTWK shares may experience high short-term volatility as this class of institutions are frequently found to sell significantly during market-wide shocks. We should dig deeper into the company’s ownership structure to find how the rest of its ownership structure can impact its investment case.
Insider Ownership
Another important group of shareholders are company insiders. Insider ownership has to do more with how the company is managed and less to do with the direct impact of the magnitude of shares trading on the market. NTWK insiders hold a significant stake of 12.25% in the company. This level of insider ownership has been found to have a negative impact on companies with consistently low PE ratios (underperformers), while it has been positive in the case of high PE ratio firms (outperformers). Another aspect of insider ownership is to learn about their recent transactions. While insider buying is possibly a sign of a positive outlook for the company, selling doesn’t necessarily indicate a negative outlook as they may be selling to meet personal financial needs.
General Public Ownership
A big stake of 67.36% in NTWK is held by the general public. With this size of ownership, retail investors can collectively play a role in major company policies that affect shareholders returns, including executive remuneration and the appointment of directors. They can also exercise the power to decline an acquisition or merger that may not improve profitability.
Private Company Ownership
Potential investors in NTWK should also look at another important group of investors: private companies, with a stake of 0.23%, who are primarily invested because of strategic and capital gain interests. However, an ownership of this size may be relatively insignificant, meaning that these shareholders may not have the potential to influence NTWK’s business strategy. Thus, investors not need worry too much about the consequences of these holdings.
What this means for you:
Are you a shareholder? With significant institutional ownership, including active hedge, existing investors should seek a margin of safety when investing in NTWK. This will allow an investor to reduce the impact of non-fundamental factors, such as volatile block trading impact on their portfolio value. If you’re interested in bolstering your portfolio with new stocks and are looking for ideas, take a look at our free app to see my list of stocks with a strong growth potential.
Are you a potential investor? Ownership structure should not be the only focus of your research when constructing an investment thesis around NTWK. Rather, you should be looking at fundamental drivers like the future growth expectations around NTWK, which is a key factor that will influence NTWK’s share value. Take a look at our most recent infographic report on NTWK for a more in-depth analysis of these factors to help you make a more well-informed investment decision.
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.
To help readers see pass the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price sensitive company announcements.
The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned.
