Yahoo Finance While hedge funds own 34% of Argonaut Gold Inc. (TSE:AR), individual investors are its largest shareholders with 39% ownership
Key Insights
Argonaut Gold's significant individual investors ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
51% of the business is held by the top 4 shareholders
Every investor in Argonaut Gold Inc. (TSE:AR) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 39% to be precise, is individual investors. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).
Meanwhile, hedge funds make up 34% of the company’s shareholders.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Argonaut Gold.
See our latest analysis for Argonaut Gold
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Argonaut 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.
Argonaut Gold already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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 Argonaut Gold's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
It looks like hedge funds own 34% of Argonaut Gold shares. That's interesting, because hedge funds can be quite active and activist. Many look for medium term catalysts that will drive the share price higher. GMT Capital Corp. is currently the largest shareholder, with 24% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 14% and 9.6% of the stock.
Our research also brought to light the fact that roughly 51% of the company is controlled by the top 4 shareholders suggesting that these owners wield significant influence on the business.
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. 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 Argonaut Gold
While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.
Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group.
We can see that insiders own shares in Argonaut Gold Inc.. As individuals, the insiders collectively own CA$10m worth of the CA$546m company. Some would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. But it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.
General Public Ownership
With a 39% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Argonaut Gold. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.
Public Company Ownership
We can see that public companies hold 14% of the Argonaut 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 be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Argonaut Gold .
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.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
