Key Insights

The considerable ownership by individual investors in Northland Power indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy The top 25 shareholders own 41% of the company Insiders have bought recently

A look at the shareholders of Northland Power Inc. (TSE:NPI) 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. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

Institutions, on the other hand, account for 49% of the company's stockholders. Institutions often own shares in more established companies, while it's not unusual to see insiders own a fair bit of smaller companies.

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

View our latest analysis for Northland Power  ownership-breakdown

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Northland Power?

Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices.

We can see that Northland Power does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Northland Power's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story. earnings-and-revenue-growth

Northland Power is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that BMO Asset Management Corp. is the largest shareholder with 10% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 4.6% and 4.1% of the stock.

A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 25 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where no single shareholder has a majority.

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 are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.



Insider Ownership Of Northland Power

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.

Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.

Our data suggests that insiders own under 1% of Northland Power Inc. in their own names. It's a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own CA$7.6m worth of shares. It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

The general public -- including retail investors -- own 51% of Northland Power. This size of ownership gives investors from the general public some collective power. They can and probably do influence decisions on executive compensation, dividend policies and proposed business acquisitions.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Northland Power better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified  2 warning signs for Northland Power (1 doesn't sit too well with us)  that you should be aware of.

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its 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.