Key Insights

• Atlantic International's significant private companies ownership suggests that the key decisions are influenced by shareholders from the larger public
• IDC Technologies, INC. owns 51% of the company
• 17% of Atlantic International is held by insiders

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Atlantic International Corp. (NASDAQ:ATLN), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. With 51% stake, private companies possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Clearly, private companies benefitted the most after the company's market cap rose by US$53m last week.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Atlantic International.

What Does The Lack Of Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Atlantic International?

Institutional investors often avoid companies that are too small, too illiquid or too risky for their tastes. But it's unusual to see larger companies without any institutional investors.

There are multiple explanations for why institutions don't own a stock. The most common is that the company is too small relative to funds under management, so the institution does not bother to look closely at the company. It is also possible that fund managers don't own the stock because they aren't convinced it will perform well. Institutional investors may not find the historic growth of the business impressive, or there might be other factors at play. You can see the past revenue performance of Atlantic International, for yourself, below.

Atlantic International is not owned by hedge funds. IDC Technologies, INC. is currently the company's largest shareholder with 51% of shares outstanding. This implies that they have majority interest control of the future of the company. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 7.2% and 4.0%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. Jeffrey Jagid, who is the second-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Chief Executive Officer.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. As far as we can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar.

Insider Ownership Of Atlantic International

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

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 most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Atlantic International Corp.. Insiders own US$43m worth of shares in the US$245m company. We would say this shows alignment with shareholders, but it is worth noting that the company is still quite small; some insiders may have founded the business. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 32% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Atlantic International. 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

It seems that Private Companies own 51%, of the Atlantic International stock. 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:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Atlantic International better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Atlantic International you should know about.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

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.