The management ownership of an operating company has a significant influence on investors’ return. When managers’ wealth is mostly tied up or their holdings make up a large portion of the company, they are more incentivized to conduct day-to-day operations, as well as form long-term strategies that will benefit investors.

The CEOs of shipping companies are major shareholders

Thankfully, most shipping companies are based in Greece and are owned by wealthy Greeks. With the exception of Navios Maritime Partners LP (NMM), every top executive (CEO) holds more than 10% of the outstanding common stock, based on companies’ most recent 20-F annual reports, under item 6 or 7. While ownership of Navios Maritime Partners LP (NMM) is low, about 23.9% of it is held by Navios Maritime Holdings Inc. (NM), whose CEO, Angeliki Frangou, holds 23.9% interest. Clearly, Safe Bulkers Inc. (SB) is the winner here.

Who is most wealthy based on dry bulk company values?

With 60% ownership, Polys Hajiannou, CEO of Safe Bulkers Inc. (SB) is also the wealthiest, based on the current market value of dry bulk shipping companies. But other CEOs—like Angeliki Frangou, Simeon Palios, and George Economou—aren’t far behind, with Angeliki Frangou’s wealth estimated near at least $210 million, Simeon Palios at $166 million plus, and George Economou at $150 plus. With more capital comes more wealth. But these CEOs aren’t so far off from each other that one company really stands out. Well, maybe Safe Bulkers Inc. (SB) stands out somewhat.

So what can an investor do? The next step would be to take a look at these CEOs’ educational backgrounds and career histories. This will provide some useful information regarding their knowledge as well as network that can add value to their firms. After all, Steve Jobs was a key part of Apple Inc.’s turnaround and enormous growth throughout the 2000s.

Read on for descriptions of these CEOs provided in their companies’ annual reports with some of our own commentary.