If you want to know who really controls Lavras Gold Corp. (CVE:LGC), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. We can see that individual investors own the lion's share in the company with 57% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).
While individual investors were the group that reaped the most benefits after last week’s 37% price gain, insiders also received a 31% cut.
Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Lavras Gold.
What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Lavras Gold?
We don't tend to see institutional investors holding stock of companies that are very risky, thinly traded, or very small. Though we do sometimes see large companies without institutions on the register, it's not particularly common.
There are many reasons why a company might not have any institutions on the share registry. It may be hard for institutions to buy large amounts of shares, if liquidity (the amount of shares traded each day) is low. If the company has not needed to raise capital, institutions might lack the opportunity to build a position. Alternatively, there might be something about the company that has kept institutional investors away. Institutional investors may not find the historic growth of the business impressive, or there might be other factors at play. You can see the past revenue performance of Lavras Gold, for yourself, below.
earnings-and-revenue-growth
Lavras Gold is not owned by hedge funds. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Eric Sprott with 14% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 8.3% and 8.1% of the stock. Rostislav Raykov, who is the third-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Member of the Board of Directors.
On studying our ownership data, we found that 14 of the top shareholders collectively own less than 50% of the share register, implying that no single individual has a majority interest.
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. As far as we can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar.
Insider Ownership Of Lavras Gold
While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. 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 information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Lavras Gold Corp.. Insiders have a CA$45m stake in this CA$143m business. We would say this shows alignment with shareholders, but it is worth noting that the company is still quite small; some insiders may have founded the business. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.
General Public Ownership
The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a substantial 57% stake in Lavras Gold, suggesting it is a fairly popular stock. This level of ownership gives investors from the wider public some power to sway key policy decisions such as board composition, executive compensation, and the dividend payout ratio.
Private Equity Ownership
Private equity firms hold a 8.3% stake in Lavras Gold. This suggests they can be influential in key policy decisions. Some investors might be encouraged by this, since private equity are sometimes able to encourage strategies that help the market see the value in the company. Alternatively, those holders might be exiting the investment after taking it public.
Private Company Ownership
Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 3.8%, of the company's shares. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company.
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.
