Cineworld shareholders: Who owns most CINE shares as the cinema firm is looking for buyers?
Cineworld (CINE), the embattled cinema chain, has seen its stock price fall sharply after insisting it wanted to sell the whole business and not break it up into parts.
The business, which filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in September, has been struggling to recover from the enforced closures during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In an update on 3 January 2023, the company revealed it would formally launch a sales process for all assets this month, alongside its ongoing capital restructuring.
However, what does this mean for shareholders of Cineworld, and what are the prospects for the CINE stock price, which has fallen 88% from 32.68p to 3.83p over the past year?
Cineworld (CINE) live stock price
In this analysis, we take a look at who are the shareholders of Cineworld, examine the recent announcements made by management and ask analysts for their predictions.
What is Cineworld?
Cineworld, which was founded in 1995, established itself as one of the world’s leading cinema groups.
Initially a private business, it re-registered as a public company in May 2006 and was listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) a year later under the ticker CINE.
In February 2018, Cineworld completed the $3.6bn acquisition of Regal Entertainment Group to complement its European cinema operations.
As of January 2023, the company operated 751 sites and 9,189 screens in 10 countries, including the UK, US, Ireland, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and Israel.
Operations included 6,853 screens at 511 sites in the US under the Regal name. There were also 1,099 screens on 102 Cineworld sites, 1,014 screens on 102 Cinema City sites, 130 screens on 10 Planet sites and 93 screens on 26 Picturehouse locations.
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Cineworld shareholders: Who owns the cinema group?
The company was owned by a mix of institutions, insiders and private investors. The top 25 Cineworld shareholders owned 55.17% of the business, according to Simply Wall Street as of 4 January. So, who owns the most shares of Cineworld?
Well, there have been complications surrounding the list of Cineworld major shareholders, with media reports identifying errors in the company’s 2021 annual report.
In a statement, the company clarified that its largest shareholder was the family of Moshe and Israel Greidinger, having reported it as being Global City Holdings, a Dutch holding company. It said:
Biggest insider Cineworld shareholders
The definition of insider shareholders usually includes board members. Given the clarification issued by Cineworld – and the fact the trusts associated with the Greidingers account for around 20% of the company – it’s fair to put these family members as significant insiders.
Moshe (Mooky) Greidinger
He has been chief executive of Cineworld since February 2014, having previously held the same role at Cinema City International. He has also held executive positions with the Cinema City Group since the mid 1980s.
Israel Greidinger
He is the deputy CEO of Cineworld. Although he joined the Board as chief operating officer in February 2014, his role changed to his current position six months later. Between 1994 and 2014, he worked for Cinema City International, where he was appointed CFO in 1995.
Other shareholders
Separately, MarketBeat, as of 4 January, had a list of insiders at Cineworld and the trades that have taken place over the past two years.
This included Ashley Steel, a non-executive director on Cineworld’s Board, who bought 15,191 shares in April 2021 at a total cost of £14,887. Other names included former chairman Anthony Bloom and non-executive director Camela Galano.
Biggest institutional Cineworld shareholders
Let’s look at the largest institutional shareholders of Cineworld.
HBOS Investment Fund Managers
One of the largest institutional shareholders is HBOS Investment Fund Managers, which has 79.7 million shares, currently worth $2.9m, according to Simply Wall Street, as of 4 January.
It operated as a privately owned investment manager. It manages mutual funds for clients, as well as investing in the equity and fixed income markets.
Barclays Bank PLC, Wealth and Investment Management Division
The next name on the list is Barclays Bank. It owns 54.1 million shares, worth $2m, according to data provided by Simply WallStreet.
This is a division of Barclays (BARC) and provides a range of global financial services. These include tailored wealth management solutions such as investing, banking and borrowing.
IG Group Holdings PLC, Asset Management Arm
IG Group currently has a holding of 37.37 million shares with a total value of $1.4m, according to Simply WallStreet.
The company is a technology-driven player in online trading and an established member of the FTSE 250 Index. Founded in 1974, it provides trading services to global clients.
Latest news: Formal sales plan due to be launched
Cineworld announced in early September 2022 it had started Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in the US.
In a statement, it said the plan was to “implement a de-leveraging transaction” to significantly reduce the group’s debt and strengthen its balance sheet.
It added that the move should also “provide the financial strength and flexibility” to accelerate, and capitalise on, Cineworld's strategy in the cinema industry.
In an update issued on 3 January 2023, Cineworld confirmed it seeks to “maximise value for the benefit of moviegoers and all other stakeholders” and reacted to media reports. It stated:
The statement said that “in parallel with developing a plan to restructure its capital structure”, the company would run a marketing process for its assets, focused on proposals for the whole group.
“It is expected that outreach to potential transaction counterparties will commence in January 2023 as Plan negotiations continue.”
However, the news didn’t go down great with the market, with the stock down to 3.28p in late trading on 4 January 2022 – 9% lower than the 3.6p level at the end of 2022.
How do analysts view Cineworld?
It has certainly been a tough period for CINE shareholders, according to Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. She said:
According to Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, Cineworld has been in a “perilous state financially” since its aggressive US expansion and aborted deal in Canada. He explained:
This has caused anxiety for Cineworld shareholders who have seen the value of their holdings plummet over the course of 2022. Mould added:
Final thoughts
This article about Cineworld’s biggest shareholders does not constitute investment advice. Analysts’ predictions can be wrong.
Always conduct your own due diligence before trading, looking at the latest news, a wide range of commentary, technical and fundamental analysis. Past performance does not guarantee future returns. And never invest money you cannot afford to lose.
FAQs
How many Cineworld shares are there?
Cineworld had 1.37bn shares in issue as of 4 January, Citywire data showed.
How many shareholders does Cineworld have?
The company is owned by a mix of institutional investors, insiders, and private investors. The top 25 Cineworld shareholders owned 55.17% of the business, according to Simply WallStreet data, as of 4 January.
Who owns Cineworld company?
Institutions owned 40.2% of the company and the general public 37.2%, according to Simply WallStreet data as of 4 January. Private companies had a 20.7% share of the business, followed by public companies with 1.8% and individual investors with 0.2%.
