United Airlines Holdings, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:UAL) high institutional ownership speaks for itself as stock continues to impress, up 3.6% over last week

Key Insights

Significantly high institutional ownership implies United Airlines Holdings' stock price is sensitive to their trading actions The top 11 shareholders own 51% of the company Insiders have sold recently

This technology could replace computers: discover the 20 stocks are working to make quantum computing a reality.

If you want to know who really controls United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are institutions with 87% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

And last week, institutional investors ended up benefitting the most after the company hit US$32b in market cap. One-year return to shareholders is currently 11% and last week’s gain was the icing on the cake.

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

View our latest analysis for United Airlines Holdings NasdaqGS:UAL Ownership Breakdown November 9th 2025

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About United Airlines Holdings?

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.

United Airlines Holdings 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. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of United Airlines Holdings, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.NasdaqGS:UAL Earnings and Revenue Growth November 9th 2025

Investors should note that institutions actually own more than half the company, so they can collectively wield significant power. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in United Airlines Holdings. The Vanguard Group, Inc. is currently the largest shareholder, with 12% of shares outstanding. With 8.8% and 6.5% of the shares outstanding respectively, Capital Research and Management Company and BlackRock, Inc. are the second and third largest shareholders.

Looking at the shareholder registry, we can see that 51% of the ownership is controlled by the top 11 shareholders, meaning that no single shareholder has a majority interest in the ownership.

Story Continues

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of United Airlines Holdings

The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves.

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 data suggests that insiders own under 1% of United Airlines Holdings, Inc. in their own names. As it is a large company, we'd only expect insiders to own a small percentage of it. But it's worth noting that they own US$218m worth of shares. It is always good to see at least some insider ownership, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 12% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over United Airlines Holdings. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Be aware that United Airlines Holdings is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis, you should know about...

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content?Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.

View Comments