Key Insights

Washington H. Soul Pattinson's significant individual investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public The top 25 shareholders own 46% of the company Insiders have been buying lately

If you want to know who really controls Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited (ASX:SOL), 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 52% to be precise, is individual investors. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Public companies, on the other hand, account for 26% of the company's stockholders.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Washington H. Soul Pattinson.

Check out our latest analysis for Washington H. Soul Pattinson ASX:SOL Ownership Breakdown November 26th 2024

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Washington H. Soul Pattinson?

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.

We can see that Washington H. Soul Pattinson does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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. 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 Washington H. Soul Pattinson's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.ASX:SOL Earnings and Revenue Growth November 26th 2024

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Washington H. Soul Pattinson. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Brickworks Limited with 26% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 4.2% and 3.7%, of the shares outstanding, respectively.

Our studies suggest that the top 25 shareholders collectively control less than half of the company's shares, meaning that the company's shares are widely disseminated and there is no dominant shareholder.

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. While there is some analyst coverage, the company is probably not widely covered. So it could gain more attention, down the track.

Insider Ownership Of Washington H. Soul Pattinson

The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

Story Continues

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 report that insiders do own shares in Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. It is a very large company, and board members collectively own AU$681m worth of shares (at current prices). we sometimes take an interest in  whether they have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public -- including retail investors -- own 52% of Washington H. Soul Pattinson. With this amount of ownership, retail investors can collectively play a role in decisions that affect shareholder returns, such as dividend policies and the appointment of directors. They can also exercise the power to vote on acquisitions or mergers that may not improve profitability.

Private Company Ownership

We can see that Private Companies own 3.1%, of the shares on issue. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company.

Public Company Ownership

It appears to us that public companies own 26% of Washington H. Soul Pattinson. 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 Washington H. Soul Pattinson better, we need to consider many other factors. Case in point: We've spotted  2 warning signs for Washington H. Soul Pattinson you should be aware of, and 1 of them can't be ignored.

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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