Yahoo Finance Euroseas Ltd.'s (NASDAQ:ESEA) top owners are private companies with 57% stake, while 34% is held by individual investors
Every investor in Euroseas Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESEA) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. With 57% stake, private companies possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).
Meanwhile, individual investors make up 34% of the company’s shareholders.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Euroseas.
View our latest analysis for Euroseas
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Euroseas?
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.
As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Euroseas. 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. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Euroseas' earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Euroseas. Our data shows that Containers Shareholders Trinity Ltd. is the largest shareholder with 38% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 7.2% and 6.7% of the stock. Additionally, the company's CEO Aristides Pittas directly holds 0.5% of the total shares outstanding.
A more detailed study of the shareholder registry showed us that 3 of the top shareholders have a considerable amount of ownership in the company, via their 52% stake.
While studying institutional ownership for a company can add value to your research, it is also a good practice to research analyst recommendations to get a deeper understand of a stock's expected performance. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.
Insider Ownership Of Euroseas
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.
We can see that insiders own shares in Euroseas Ltd.. In their own names, insiders own US$2.8m worth of stock in the US$156m company. It is good to see some investment by insiders, but we usually like to see higher insider holdings. It might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.
General Public Ownership
With a 34% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Euroseas. 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.
Private Company Ownership
It seems that Private Companies own 57%, of the Euroseas stock. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.
Next Steps:
It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Euroseas better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks for example - Euroseas has 3 warning signs (and 1 which doesn't sit too well with us) we think 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.
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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.
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