Volvo Group is a Swedish multinational manufacturing company that specializes in commercial vehicles, including trucks, buses, construction equipment, engines, and drive systems. The company was founded in 1927 and has its headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden. Volvo Group is a publicly traded company listed on the Stockholm stock exchange.
Who owns the most Volvo shares?
As a publicly traded company, Volvo Group has many shareholders from around the world. However, there are a few major shareholders that own significant portions of Volvo:
- Geely Holding Group – Geely, a Chinese automotive company, owns around 8.2% of Volvo’s shares, making it the largest single shareholder.
- AMF Insurance and Funds – AMF, a Swedish insurance company, owns around 6.8% of Volvo.
- Norges Bank Investment Management – The Central Bank of Norway owns 6.8% of Volvo shares.
- Alecta Pension Insurance – Alecta, a Swedish pension fund, owns close to 6% of Volvo.
Together, these four shareholders own over 27% of Volvo Group. The rest of Volvo’s shares are spread out among institutional and retail investors around the world.
Largest individual shareholders of Volvo
While Geely Holding Group is the largest single shareholder of Volvo as an organization, looking at individual people who own Volvo shares, the founding Wallenberg family members are major individual shareholders:
- Marcus Wallenberg – Chairman of Volvo, owns shares worth around $39 million.
- Jacob Wallenberg – Former Volvo board member, owns around $25 million in shares.
- Peter Wallenberg Jr. – Former Volvo CEO, has shares worth around $20 million.
Other major individual shareholders of Volvo Group include:
- Carl Douglas – British businessman, owns approximately $300 million in Volvo shares.
- Li Shufu – Founder and Chairman of Geely, has shares worth around $150 million.
- Stefan Persson – Chairman of H&M, owns about $130 million in Volvo stock.
Shareholder breakdown of Volvo
Here is a breakdown of the types of shareholders that own Volvo Group shares and approximately what percentage of the company they own:
Shareholder Type | Ownership Percentage |
---|---|
Swedish institutions and funds | 30% |
Foreign institutions and funds | 40% |
Swedish retail investors | 10% |
Foreign retail investors | 5% |
Founding Wallenberg family | 5% |
Geely Holding Group | 8% |
Other major individual investors | 2% |
As the table shows, Swedish institutions control the largest block of shares at 30%. But foreign institutions also own a significant portion at 40%. The Wallenberg family of founders and Geely Holding Group in China are the only two individual entities that own over 5%.
Geely Holding Group’s acquisition of Volvo shares
Geely Holding Group, one of China’s largest privately-owned automotive companies, has been buying up Volvo shares over the past decade, making it Volvo’s largest individual shareholder today.
Here is a brief timeline of Geely’s acquisition of Volvo shares:
- 2009 – Geely buys Ford Motor Company’s Volvo car division for $1.8 billion, accounting for around 20% of Volvo’s shares.
- 2010 – Geely continues acquiring shares on the open market, boosting its stake to over 30%.
- 2012 – Geely ownership of Volvo falls back to around 22% as it sells some shares.
- 2015 – Geely builds its stake in Volvo back up to around 15% ownership.
- 2016 – Geely purchases more shares, owning over 20% of Volvo again.
- 2018 – Geely increases holdings to around 27% ownership of Volvo.
- 2019 – Today Geely owns around 8.2% of Volvo shares, reducing holdings but remaining top shareholder.
Through this series of share purchases and sales, Geely has become deeply invested in Volvo, and has significant influence over the future direction of the company.
Importance of Volvo’s major shareholders
Volvo’s major shareholders, especially institutional investors and Geely, have an important influence on Volvo Group for several reasons:
- Elect board members – Large shareholders can nominate and elect directors to Volvo’s board.
- Approve decisions – Major shareholders have voting power to approve or reject significant Volvo business decisions.
- Shape strategy – Largest shareholders can guide Volvo’s overall corporate vision and strategy for the future.
- Geely partnership – Geely as top shareholder gives Volvo access to China’s huge auto market.
Balancing the interests of large shareholders while still operating Volvo efficiently is an ongoing challenge for Volvo’s management team. But keeping shareholders aligned and happy is crucial for Volvo’s long-term success.
Conclusion
In summary, Volvo Group has a diverse mix of shareholders, with four major entities owning over 27% of the company: Geely Holding Group, AMF Insurance and Funds, Norges Bank Investment Management, and Alecta Pension Insurance. Geely holds the most individual shares at around 8.2% ownership. But Swedish and foreign institutions combined own around 70% of Volvo. Understanding Volvo’s shareholders provides insight into who controls decision-making power at the company.