To get a sense of who is truly in control of Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft (ETR:BMW), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual insiders with 37% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.
With such a notable stake in the company, insiders would be highly incentivised to make value accretive decisions.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Bayerische Motoren Werke.
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Bayerische Motoren Werke?
Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.
Bayerische Motoren Werke already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. 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 Bayerische Motoren Werke, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.
XTRA:BMW Earnings and Revenue Growth April 13th 2025
Bayerische Motoren Werke is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that Susanne Klatten is the largest shareholder with 20% of shares outstanding. With 16% and 8.8% of the shares outstanding respectively, Stefan Quandt and AQTON SE are the second and third largest shareholders.
On looking further, we found that 51% of the shares are owned by the top 5 shareholders. In other words, these shareholders have a meaningful say in the decisions of the company.
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 Bayerische Motoren Werke
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. 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.
Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.
Our information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft. It is very interesting to see that insiders have a meaningful €15b stake in this €41b business. Most would be pleased to see the board is investing alongside them. You may wish to access this free chart showing recent trading by insiders.
General Public Ownership
The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 34% stake in Bayerische Motoren Werke. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.
If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this freereport on analyst forecasts .
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.
