Key Insights

• Significant control over Northern Minerals by retail investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• A total of 16 investors have a majority stake in the company with 50% ownership
• Insider ownership in Northern Minerals is 16%

If you want to know who really controls Northern Minerals Limited (ASX:NTU), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 38% stake, retail investors possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

And private companies on the other hand have a 28% ownership in the company.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Northern Minerals.

See our latest analysis for Northern Minerals

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Northern Minerals?

Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.

Institutions have a very small stake in Northern Minerals. That indicates that the company is on the radar of some funds, but it isn't particularly popular with professional investors at the moment. If the business gets stronger from here, we could see a situation where more institutions are keen to buy. It is not uncommon to see a big share price rise if multiple institutional investors are trying to buy into a stock at the same time. So check out the historic earnings trajectory, below, but keep in mind it's the future that counts most.

Northern Minerals is not owned by hedge funds. Vastness Investment Group Limited is currently the largest shareholder, with 9.5% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 7.7% and 7.4%, of the shares outstanding, respectively.

A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 16 shareholders have a combined ownership of 50% implying that no single shareholder has a majority.

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 Northern Minerals

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. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves.

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 a reasonable proportion of Northern Minerals Limited. Insiders own AU$26m worth of shares in the AU$161m 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

With a 38% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Northern Minerals. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Private Company Ownership

We can see that Private Companies own 28%, 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.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Like risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 5 warning signs for Northern Minerals (of which 2 are concerning!) you should know about.

Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the 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.