A look at the shareholders of ECA SA (EPA:ECASA) can tell us which group is most powerful. Large companies usually have institutions as shareholders, and we usually see insiders owning shares in smaller companies.
ECA is a smaller company with a market capitalization of €127.3m, so it may still be flying under the radar of many institutional investors. Our analysis of the ownership of the company, below, shows that institutions are noticeable on the share registry. Let’s delve deeper into each type of owner, to discover more about ECASA.
See our latest analysis for ECA
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About ECA?
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.
ECA already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own 16.8% of 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. 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 ECA’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 ECA. 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 ECA
While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.
Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group.
Our data cannot confirm that board members are holding shares personally. It is unusual not to have at least some personal holdings by board members, so our data might be flawed. A good next step would be to check how much the CEO is paid.
General Public Ownership
The general public holds a 15.3% stake in ECASA. While this group can’t necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.