Institutions own 33% of KION GROUP AG (ETR:KGX) shares but public companies control 47% of

Key Insights

• The considerable ownership by public companies in KION GROUP indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy

• 51% of the business is held by the top 2 shareholders

• 33% of KION GROUP is held by Institutions

A look at the shareholders of KION GROUP AG (ETR:KGX) can tell us which group is most powerful. With 47% stake, public companies possess the maximum shares in the company. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Institutions, on the other hand, account for 33% of the company’s stockholders. Institutions will often hold stock in bigger companies, and we expect to see insiders owning a noticeable percentage of the smaller ones.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of KION GROUP.

See our latest analysis for KION GROUP

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About KION GROUP?

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.

KION GROUP 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 KION GROUP, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Hedge funds don’t have many shares in KION GROUP. The company’s largest shareholder is Weichai Power Co., Ltd., with ownership of 47%. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 4.3% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 3.0% by the third-largest shareholder.

After doing some more digging, we found that the top 2 shareholders collectively control more than half of the company’s shares, implying that they have considerable power to influence the company’s decisions.

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 KION GROUP

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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.

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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 most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of KION GROUP AG. It’s a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own €4.1m worth of shares. It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

With a 20% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over KION GROUP. 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.

Public Company Ownership

It appears to us that public companies own 47% of KION GROUP. This may be a strategic interest and the two companies may have related business interests. It could be that they have de-merged. This holding is probably worth investigating further.

Next Steps:

It’s always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand KION GROUP better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should be aware of the 2 warning signs we’ve spotted with KION GROUP .

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.