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The big shareholder groups in BancFirst Corporation (NASDAQ:BANF) have power over the company. Large companies usually have institutions as shareholders, and we usually see insiders owning shares in smaller companies. 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.
BancFirst has a market capitalization of US$1.9b, so we would expect some institutional investors to have noticed the stock. Our analysis of the ownership of the company, below, shows that institutions own shares in the company. We can zoom in on the different ownership groups, to learn more about BancFirst.
Check out our latest analysis for BancFirst
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About BancFirst?
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.
BancFirst 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. 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 BancFirst's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.
BancFirst is not owned by hedge funds. Our data suggests that David Rainbolt, who is also the company's Top Key Executive, holds the most number of shares at 33%. 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 9.4% and 5.8% of the stock.
Our research also brought to light the fact that roughly 54% of the company is controlled by the top 4 shareholders suggesting that these owners wield significant influence on the business.
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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.