Yahoo Finance ConocoPhillips' (NYSE:COP) institutional investors lost 7.0% over the past week but have profited from longer-term gains
If you want to know who really controls ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 83% to be precise, is institutions. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).
Institutional investors was the group most impacted after the company's market cap fell to US$143b last week. Still, the 62% one-year gains may have helped mitigate their overall losses. They should, however, be mindful of further losses in the future.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about ConocoPhillips.
See our latest analysis for ConocoPhillips
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About ConocoPhillips?
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.
ConocoPhillips already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. 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 ConocoPhillips' historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.
Since institutional investors own more than half the issued stock, the board will likely have to pay attention to their preferences. ConocoPhillips is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that The Vanguard Group, Inc. is the largest shareholder with 9.1% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 7.8% and 6.9%, of the shares outstanding, respectively.
Looking at the shareholder registry, we can see that 51% of the ownership is controlled by the top 17 shareholders, meaning that no single shareholder has a majority interest in the ownership.
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. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.
Insider Ownership Of ConocoPhillips
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 most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of ConocoPhillips. As it is a large company, we'd only expect insiders to own a small percentage of it. But it's worth noting that they own US$134m worth of shares. Arguably recent buying and selling is just as important to consider. You can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.
General Public Ownership
The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 17% stake in ConocoPhillips. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders.
Next Steps:
It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand ConocoPhillips better, we need to consider many other factors. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for ConocoPhillips you should be aware of, and 1 of them is significant.
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.
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