The shareholder is the owner of a fraction of a Entreprise having a statute of business firm. For this reason, it holds action S of this company of which each one represents a share of capital sound . He is thus joint owner - with other shareholders - totality of this capital.

The shareholder is one of the financial partners of the company and supports his economic development by the contribution of his capital. Its catch of financial risk is then remunerated by Dividende S poured by the company by each owner of actions.

The quality of shareholder is not limited to the private sector, since some state enterprises have the statute of business firm. In this case a community, for example a State, is the shareholder either exclusive, or simply majority if there exist also private shareholders (p. e.g. in France: EDF).

The shareholding , when it is conceived like primarily private, is one of fundamental of the Market economy, characteristic of the organizations Capitaliste S of the economy, which theoretically allows the optimal allowance of the financial resources towards the means of production of the Entreprise S (invisible cf Main).

Teaching example

In general, the value of the private Entreprise S is too large so that only one person is owner at 100%, even while resorting to the Endettement. In addition, the Diversification of the risks invites not “to place all its eggs in the same basket. ”

In order to make it possible several people to become joint owners of same a Undertaken deprived, the capital of the company is then materialized by actions. For example: 10000 actions of 500 Euros each one for a Capital of 5 million euros of the Undertaken E . The shareholder who decides to buy 40 actions with 500 euros each one - i.e. to invest: 20000 euros in the capital of the company E - then becomes owner of 0,4% of the Entreprise E considered.

The creation of actions is generally done during capital growths, when the historical owners call upon new financial funds to develop the company. The share of these former shareholders in the total capital is then " diluted ".

Shareholding

The shareholding of a company is the whole of its Actionnaire S, in other words his owners on the one hand capital of this one in the form of actions.

The shareholding within the meaning of economic agent indicates of this fact the whole of the shareholders of company. One can by extension assimilate to it the stockholding of close or derived nature (certificates of investment, shares of investment trust, convertible bonds, contracts derived, shares of limited liability company of certain importance…).

In the cooperative society one speaks about full membership rather than of shareholding.

Historical emergence of the shareholding

See also: History of capitalism

The emergence of the shareholding goes back to the 19th century, at the beginning of the Industrial revolution. To finance the industrial development brought by the Steam engine, the contractors had to gather capital near investors to finance the development of their companies.

Types of distribution of the shareholding

According to the companies , the shareholding is concentrated or dispersed according to whether it is primarily in one or more hands, or on the contrary largely distributed in the public. Often, in this last case, the actions are dimensioned and are exchanged on a Marché organized (purse). A dispersed shareholding and whose titles are publicly dimensioned, as it is generally the case of the large companies is more easily favourable with the public offerings. The intermediate situation is that where an small group holds a majority of control and where the remainder of the shareholding is distributed in the public. This part is called by the stock-brokers the " flottant" in the sense that it is the part being the object of stock exchange transactions indeed.

According to the countries , the shareholding is rather direct or rather indirect, according to whether it is largely held by basic shareholders or by the means of Investment trust, pension funds and other organizations of collective saving. In addition the great groups of companies have their shareholding generally arranged hierarchically in the form of a company-mother (Holding) who holds the majority, to see it quasi totality, of the actions of subsidiary companies and sub-subsidiary companies,

Employee stock ownership

One speaks about employee stock ownership when employees hold a significant number of the actions of their company (apart from simple purchases out of purse). That comes from subscriptions at preferential price (or by the exercise of stock options) or, in certain cases by distribution of those in supplement of the wages. The carriers are thus interested in the active and for the benefits of the company, hold rights to vote and in certain cases administrators name. It is one in the ways among others (premiums…) for the company to adapt the part known as variable of the wages according to the benefit.

It will be noted that the employee stock ownership is a form of saving which with the disadvantage of concentrating on the same people the risks in the event of bad deals of the company (risk to lose at the same time its work and its capital, or its pension if the actions are blocked in a content of retirement " maison"), so that certain forms of profit-sharing allow to receive shares of funds holding a wallet diversified rather than of the actions of the company itself.

Popular Actionnarait

France counts 7 to 8 million individual shareholders in 2007. The privatizations, as from 1986, and the development of the broking on line, supported the development of the popular shareholding in France. defense associations of the shareholders were constituted to defend the advantages of these small carriers.

Bonds

See too

External bonds

  • French Institute of Government of the Companies

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