Ur-Energy Inc. (TSE:URE) has attracted the attention of institutional investors who hold a significant 47% stake

Key ideas

• Significantly high institutional ownership implies that Ur-Energy’s stock price is sensitive to their trading actions.

• 51% of the company is owned by the top 15 shareholders

• Property research along with analyst forecast data helps provide a good understanding of the opportunities in a stock.

A look at Ur-Energy Inc. (TSE:URE) shareholders can tell us which group is more powerful. With 47% of the capital, institutions own the maximum share in the company. In other words, the group will benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if the stock goes down).

Since institutional investors have access to enormous amounts of capital, their market movements tend to be subject to intense scrutiny from retail or individual investors. Therefore, having a considerable amount of institutional money invested in a company is often considered a desirable trait.

Let’s take a closer look at what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Ur-Energy.

Check out our latest analysis for Ur-Energy

What does institutional ownership tell us about Ur-Energy?

Institutional investors typically compare their own returns to those of a commonly followed index. They therefore generally consider buying larger companies included in the relevant benchmark index.

As you can see, institutional investors hold a significant stake in Ur-Energy. This may indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility with the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of the supposed validation provided by institutional investors. They, too, are sometimes wrong. If multiple institutions change their views on a stock at the same time, the stock price could fall quickly. So it’s worth taking a look at Ur-Energy’s earnings history below. Of course, it’s the future that really matters.

It appears that hedge funds own 13% of Ur-Energy’s shares. This is interesting, because hedge funds can be very active and activist. Many look for medium-term catalysts that will drive the stock price higher. The company’s largest shareholder is MM Asset Management Inc, with an 8.2% stake. With 7.8% and 5.2% of shares outstanding, respectively, ALPS Advisors, Inc. and Azarias Capital Management, LP are the second and third largest shareholders.

The story continues

Looking at the shareholder register, we can see that 51% of the ownership is controlled by the top 15 shareholders, meaning that no single shareholder has a majority stake in the ownership.

While it makes sense to study data on institutional ownership of 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 helpful to know their overall view of the future.

Ur-Energy Insider Ownership

Although the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. The management of the company answers to the board of directors and the latter must represent the interests of the shareholders. Notably, it sometimes happens that high-level executives themselves sit on the board of directors.

I generally consider internal ownership to be a good thing. However, in some cases it is more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for its decisions.

Shareholders would probably be interested to know that insiders own shares in Ur-Energy Inc.. As individuals, insiders collectively own CA$9.1m worth of the CA$572m company . This shows at least some alignment. You can click here to see if these insiders have been buying or selling.

General public property

With a 38% stake, the general public, consisting mainly of individual investors, has some influence on Ur-Energy. This size of ownership, although considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in line with that of other large shareholders.

Next steps:

While it’s worth considering the different groups that own a business, there are other factors that are even more important. For example, we discovered 2 warning signs for Ur-Energy (1 is a bit nasty!) which you should be aware of before investing here.

Eventually the future is the most important. You can access it free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

NB: The figures in this article are calculated using data for the last twelve months, which refers to the 12 month period ending on the last day of the month in which the financial statements are dated. This may not be consistent with the annual report figures for the entire year.

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This Simply Wall St article is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to constitute financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell shares and does not take into account your objectives or your financial situation. Our goal is to provide you with targeted, long-term analysis based on fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not take into account the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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