Every investor in Ituran Location and Control Ltd. (NASDAQ:ITRN) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. We can see that institutions own the lion's share in the company with 57% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.
Since institutional have access to huge amounts of capital, their market moves tend to receive a lot of scrutiny by retail or individual investors. As a result, a sizeable amount of institutional money invested in a firm is generally viewed as a positive attribute.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Ituran Location and Control.
NasdaqGS:ITRN Ownership Breakdown February 26th 2024
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Ituran Location and Control?
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 Ituran Location and Control. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. 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 Ituran Location and Control, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.
NasdaqGS:ITRN Earnings and Revenue Growth February 26th 2024
Institutional investors own over 50% of the company, so together than can probably strongly influence board decisions. Our data indicates that hedge funds own 12% of Ituran Location and Control. 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. Vulcan Value Partners, LLC is currently the company's largest shareholder with 8.5% of shares outstanding. Moked Ituran Ltd. is the second largest shareholder owning 7.2% of common stock, and Phoenix Investments & Finances Ltd holds about 6.2% of the company stock.
We also observed that the top 10 shareholders account for more than half of the share register, with a few smaller shareholders to balance the interests of the larger ones to a certain extent.
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. We're not picking up on any analyst coverage of the stock at the moment, so the company is unlikely to be widely held.
Insider Ownership Of Ituran Location and Control
The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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.
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.
Our most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of Ituran Location and Control Ltd.. We do note, however, it is possible insiders have an indirect interest through a private company or other corporate structure. It appears that the board holds about US$923k worth of stock. This compares to a market capitalization of US$506m. We generally like to see a board more invested. However it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.
General Public Ownership
With a 24% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Ituran Location and Control. 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.
Private Company Ownership
Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 7.2%, of the company's shares. 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.
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.
