Key findings

• The significant stake held by private equity firms in Shoper suggests that they collectively have a greater say in the company’s governance and strategy.
• A total of 4 investors own the majority of the company with 62%
• The insider share at Shoper is 24%

Any investor in Shoper SA (WSE:SHO) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. And the group that holds the largest piece of the pie is private equity firms with a 25% stake. In other words, this group stands to gain (or lose) the most from their investment in the company.

While private equity firms benefited the most from last week’s ten percent increase in share prices, insiders also had to accept a decline of 24 percent.

Let’s take a closer look at what the different shareholder types can tell us about Shoper.

Check out our latest analysis for Shoper

What does institutional ownership tell us about Shoper?

Many institutions measure their performance against an index that is similar to the local market, so they tend to pay more attention to companies listed in major indices.

As you can see, institutional investors own a significant amount of Shoper. This means that the analysts at those institutions have looked at the stock and like it. But like everyone else, they can be wrong. It’s not unusual for the share price to fall sharply if two large institutional investors try to sell a stock at the same time, so it’s worth checking out Shoper’s past earnings history (see below). Of course, you should remember that there are other factors to consider as well.

Hedge funds do not own a lot of shares in Shoper. Value4Capital is currently the company’s largest shareholder, with 25% of outstanding shares. The second and third largest shareholders are Krzysztof Krawczyk and Rafal Krawczyk, who each own 12% of the shares. Rafal Krawczyk, the third largest shareholder, also happens to be a member of the board of directors.

Upon closer inspection, we found that 62% of the shares are owned by the four largest shareholders. In other words, these shareholders have a significant say in the company’s decisions.

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock’s expected performance. The same can be done by studying analyst opinions. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you can look at the forecasted growth quite easily.

Insider ownership of Shoper

While the exact definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management is ultimately accountable to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be board members, especially if they are a founder or CEO.

Insider ownership is positive when it signals that management thinks like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give enormous power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.

According to our information, insiders hold a significant stake in Shoper SA. Insiders own PLN 325 million worth of shares in the PLN 1.3 billion company. We would say this shows alignment with shareholders, but it is worth noting that the company is still quite small; some insiders may have started the company. You can click here to see if these insiders have been buying or selling.

Public property

With a 12% stake, the public, which consists mainly of individual investors, has some influence over Shoper. While this group may not necessarily call the shots, they can certainly have a real impact on how the company is run.

Private equity ownership

With a 25% stake, private equity firms are able to play a role in shaping the company’s strategy with a focus on value creation. Some investors might be encouraged by this, as private equity can sometimes encourage strategies that help the market see the value in the company. Alternatively, these holders might exit the investment after it goes public.

Private company ownership

According to our data, private companies own 24% of a company’s shares. This fact alone is difficult to draw conclusions from, so it’s worth investigating who owns these private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties own shares in a public company through a separate private company.

Next Steps:

It’s always worth thinking about the different groups that own shares in a company, but to better understand Shoper, we need to consider many other factors.

I like to dive deeper in the past performance of a company. Historical sales and profits can be found in this detailed graphics.

But ultimately It is the futurenot the past, will determine how well the owners of this company will perform, so we think it wise to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a better future.

NB: The figures in this article are calculated using the last twelve months’ data, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last day of the month in which the financial statements are dated. This may not match the figures in the annual report.

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This Simply Wall St article is of a general nature. We comment solely on the basis of historical data and analyst forecasts, using an unbiased methodology. Our articles do not constitute financial advice. It is not a recommendation to buy or sell any stock and does not take into account your objectives or financial situation. Our goal is to provide you with long-term analysis based on fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not take into account the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative materials. Simply Wall St does not hold any of the stocks mentioned.