Editing Shareholder (section)

{{Short description|Individual or organization that owns part of a corporation through shares of its stock}}
{{worldwide|date=May 2021}}
A '''shareholder''' (in the United States often referred to as '''stockholder''') of [[corporate]] stock refers to an [[individual]] or [[legal entity]] (such as another [[corporation]], a [[body politic]], a [[Trust law|trust]] or [[partnership]]) that is registered by the corporation as the legal owner of [[share (finance)|shares]] of the [[share capital]] of a [[public company|public]] or [[private corporation]]. Shareholders may be referred to as members of a corporation. A person or legal entity becomes a shareholder in a corporation when their name and other details are entered in the corporation's register of shareholders or members,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/shareholder.asp|title=Shareholder|first=Amy|last=Fontinelle|date=26 November 2003|website=investopedia.com}}</ref> and unless required by law the corporation is not required or permitted to enquire as to the [[beneficial ownership]] of the shares. A corporation generally cannot own shares of itself.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://asic.gov.au/for-business/running-a-company/company-shareholders/|title = Company shareholders}}</ref>

The influence of shareholders on the business is determined by the shareholding percentage owned. Shareholders of corporations are legally separate from the corporation itself. They are generally not liable for the corporation's debts, and the shareholders' liability for company debts is said to be limited to the unpaid share price unless a shareholder has offered guarantees. The corporation is not required to record the beneficial ownership of a shareholding, only the owner as recorded on the register. When more than one person is on the record as owners of a shareholding, the first one on the record is taken to control the shareholding, and all correspondence and communication by the company will be with that person.{{clarify|date=May 2021}}

Shareholders may have acquired their shares in the [[primary market]] by subscribing to the [[initial public offering|IPO]]s and thus provided [[capital (finance)|capital]] to the corporation. However, most shareholders acquire shares in the [[secondary market]] and provided no capital directly to the corporation. Shareholders may be granted special privileges depending on a [[share class]]. The [[board of directors]] of a corporation generally governs a corporation for the benefit of shareholders.

Shareholders are considered by some to be a [[subset]] of [[stakeholder (corporate)|stakeholders]], which may include anyone who has a direct or indirect interest in the [[business entity]]. For example, [[Employment|employees]], [[suppliers]], [[customer]]s, the [[community]], etc., are typically considered [[Stakeholder (corporate)|stakeholders]] because they contribute value or are impacted by the [[corporation]].