LANXESS Aktiengesellschaft's (ETR:LXS) largest shareholders are individual investors with 52% ownership, institutions own 45%

editorial-team@simplywallst.com (Simply Wall St)

Tue, Oct 17, 2023, 12:02 AM 4 min read

If you want to know who really controls LANXESS Aktiengesellschaft (ETR:LXS), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. We can see that individual investors own the lion's share in the company with 52% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

And institutions on the other hand have a 45% ownership in the company. Large companies usually have institutions as shareholders, and we usually see insiders owning shares in smaller companies.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of LANXESS.

View our latest analysis for LANXESS

ownership-breakdown — XTRA:LXS Ownership Breakdown October 17th 2023

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About LANXESS?

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.

LANXESS already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of LANXESS, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

earnings-and-revenue-growth — XTRA:LXS Earnings and Revenue Growth October 17th 2023

LANXESS is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is Causeway Capital Management LLC, with ownership of 5.2%. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 5.0% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 3.8% 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 LANXESS

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.

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 data cannot confirm that board members are holding shares personally. Not all jurisdictions have the same rules around disclosing insider ownership, and it is possible we have missed something, here. So you can click here learn more about the CEO.

General Public Ownership

The general public -- including retail investors -- own 52% of LANXESS. This level of ownership gives investors from the wider public some power to sway key policy decisions such as board composition, executive compensation, and the dividend payout ratio.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand LANXESS better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for LANXESS 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.