Key Insights

• Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, Trustmark's stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions

• 51% of the business is held by the top 7 shareholders

• Ownership research along with analyst forecasts data help provide a good understanding of opportunities in a stock

To get a sense of who is truly in control of Trustmark Corporation (NASDAQ:TRMK), it is important to understand the ownership structure of the business. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 77% to be precise, is institutions. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk).

Because institutional owners have a huge pool of resources and liquidity, their investing decisions tend to carry a great deal of weight, especially with individual investors. Hence, having a considerable amount of institutional money invested in a company is often regarded as a desirable trait.

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

View our latest analysis for Trustmark

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Trustmark?

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.

Trustmark already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. 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. 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 Trustmark's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

Investors should note that institutions actually own more than half the company, so they can collectively wield significant power. Trustmark is not owned by hedge funds. Our data shows that BlackRock, Inc. is the largest shareholder with 14% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 11% and 6.6% of the stock.

We also observed that the top 7 shareholders account for more than half of the share register, with a few smaller shareholders to balance the interests of the larger ones to a certain extent.

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