Key Insights

• Significant control over PostNL by individual investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• A total of 15 investors have a majority stake in the company with 50% ownership
• 36% of PostNL is held by insiders

A look at the shareholders of PostNL N.V. (AMS:PNL) can tell us which group is most powerful. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual investors with 51% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

And individual insiders on the other hand have a 36% ownership in the company. Generally speaking, as a company grows, institutions will increase their ownership. Conversely, insiders often decrease their ownership over time.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of PostNL, beginning with the chart below.

View our latest analysis for PostNL

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About PostNL?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in PostNL. 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. 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 PostNL, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in PostNL. The company's largest shareholder is Daniel Kretinsky, with ownership of 30%. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 4.9% and 3.0% of the stock.

A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 15 shareholders have a combined ownership of 50% implying that 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 are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of PostNL

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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.

It seems insiders own a significant proportion of PostNL N.V.. Insiders own €184m worth of shares in the €517m company. It is great to see insiders so invested in the business. It might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a substantial 51% stake in PostNL, 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.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand PostNL better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks for example - PostNL has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

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.