Every investor in VGI Partners Limited (ASX:VGI) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. Insiders often own a large chunk of younger, smaller, companies while huge companies tend to have institutions as shareholders. Warren Buffett said that he likes "a business with enduring competitive advantages that is run by able and owner-oriented people." So it's nice to see some insider ownership, because it may suggest that management is owner-oriented.
VGI Partners is a smaller company with a market capitalization of AU$467m, so it may still be flying under the radar of many institutional investors. Taking a look at our data on the ownership groups (below), it seems that institutions are not on the share registry. Let's delve deeper into each type of owner, to discover more about VGI Partners.
See our latest analysis for VGI Partners
What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About VGI Partners?
Small companies that are not very actively traded often lack institutional investors, but it's less common to see large companies without them.
There are multiple explanations for why institutions don't own a stock. The most common is that the company is too small relative to funds under management, so the institution does not bother to look closely at the company. It is also possible that fund managers don't own the stock because they aren't convinced it will perform well. VGI Partners might not have the sort of past performance institutions are looking for, or perhaps they simply have not studied the business closely.
Hedge funds don't have many shares in VGI Partners. Our data suggests that Robert Luciano, who is also the company's Top Key Executive, holds the most number of shares at 59%. When an insider holds a sizeable amount of a company's stock, investors consider it as a positive sign because it suggests that insiders are willing to have their wealth tied up in the future of the company. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 15% and 2.6% of the stock.
While studying institutional ownership for a company can add value to your research, it is also a good practice to research analyst recommendations to get a deeper understand of a stock's expected performance. As far I can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar.
Insider Ownership Of VGI Partners
The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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.