Key Insights

• Significant insider control over Atlanticus Holdings implies vested interests in company growth
• A total of 2 investors have a majority stake in the company with 57% ownership
• Insiders have been selling lately

If you want to know who really controls Atlanticus Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:ATLC), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 67% stake, individual insiders possess the maximum shares in the company. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Despite recent sales, insiders own the most shares in the company. As a result, they stand to gain the most after the stock gained 9.1% in the past week.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Atlanticus Holdings.

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Atlanticus Holdings?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Atlanticus Holdings. 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. 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 Atlanticus Holdings' historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Atlanticus Holdings is not owned by hedge funds. Frank Hanna is currently the largest shareholder, with 29% of shares outstanding. With 28% and 5.0% of the shares outstanding respectively, David Hanna and William McCamey are the second and third largest shareholders. David Hanna, who is the second-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Top Key Executive. Additionally, the company's CEO Jeffrey Howard directly holds 4.2% of the total shares outstanding.

To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 2 shareholders have a majority ownership in the company, meaning that they are powerful enough to influence the decisions of the company.

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. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Atlanticus Holdings

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.

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.

It seems that insiders own more than half the Atlanticus Holdings Corporation stock. This gives them a lot of power. Given it has a market cap of US$918m, that means they have US$618m worth of shares. Most would be pleased to see the board is investing alongside them. You may wish todiscover (for free) if they have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 18% stake in Atlanticus Holdings. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Atlanticus Holdings better, we need to consider many other factors. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Atlanticus Holdings that you should be aware of before investing here.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
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.