Key Insights

• Significant control over Tsakos Energy Navigation by individual investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions
• 50% of the business is held by the top 17 shareholders
• 19% of Tsakos Energy Navigation is held by insiders

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Tsakos Energy Navigation Limited (NYSE:TEN), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. With 41% stake, individual investors 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).

While institutions who own 21% came under pressure after market cap dropped to US$713m last week,individual investors took the most losses.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Tsakos Energy Navigation, beginning with the chart below.

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Tsakos Energy Navigation?

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.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Tsakos Energy Navigation. 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. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Tsakos Energy Navigation's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Tsakos Energy Navigation. Looking at our data, we can see that the largest shareholder is Panagiotis Tsakos with 11% of shares outstanding. The second and third largest shareholders are Tsakos Holdings Foundation and Nikolas Tsakos, with an equal amount of shares to their name at 8.4%. Nikolas Tsakos, who is the third-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Member of the Board of Directors.

A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 17 shareholders have a combined ownership of 50% implying that 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 is some analyst coverage of the stock, but it could still become more well known, with time.

Insider Ownership Of Tsakos Energy Navigation

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.

It seems insiders own a significant proportion of Tsakos Energy Navigation Limited. Insiders have a US$139m stake in this US$713m business. 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 41% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Tsakos Energy Navigation. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 18%, of the company's shares. It's hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private 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. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 3 warning signs with Tsakos Energy Navigation , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

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.

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