Individual investors who have a significant stake must be disappointed along with institutions after Tesoro Gold Ltd's (ASX:TSO) market cap dropped by AU$20m
Key Insights
- Tesoro Gold's significant individual investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
- A total of 20 investors have a majority stake in the company with 45% ownership
- Recent sales by insiders
To get a sense of who is truly in control of Tesoro Gold Ltd (ASX:TSO), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. With 52% stake, individual investors 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).
While institutions who own 19% came under pressure after market cap dropped to AU$174m last week,individual investors took the most losses.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Tesoro Gold.
View our latest analysis for Tesoro Gold
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Tesoro Gold?
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 Tesoro Gold 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 Tesoro Gold's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
Hedge funds don't have many shares in Tesoro Gold. Gold Fields Limited is currently the largest shareholder, with 14% of shares outstanding. Collins St Asset Management Pty Ltd is the second largest shareholder owning 11% of common stock, and Ruffer LLP holds about 5.6% of the company stock. In addition, we found that Zeffron Reeves, the CEO has 2.6% of the shares allocated to their name.
A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 20 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where no single shareholder has a majority.
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 is a little analyst coverage of the stock, but not much. So there is room for it to gain more coverage.
Insider Ownership Of Tesoro Gold
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. 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.
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.
Our most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in Tesoro Gold Ltd. It has a market capitalization of just AU$174m, and insiders have AU$13m worth of shares, in their own names. 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
The general public -- including retail investors -- own 52% of Tesoro Gold. 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
It seems that Private Companies own 4.2%, of the Tesoro Gold 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.
Public Company Ownership
We can see that public companies hold 13% of the Tesoro Gold shares on issue. We can't be certain but it is quite possible this is a strategic stake. The businesses may be similar, or work together.
Next Steps:
While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. To that end, you should learn about the 3 warning signs we've spotted with Tesoro Gold (including 2 which are potentially serious) .
But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter 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.