Exploring Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR) Investor Profile: Who’s Buying and Why?

You're looking at Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR), a century-old manufacturer, and you're probably asking: who is actually buying this micro-cap stock, and why are they stepping in now? Honestly, the investor profile is a fascinating split between long-term insiders and institutions, which is typical for a company with a small market capitalization of just $8.7 million as of November 2025. What's interesting is the recent performance shift: for the first nine months of 2025, CVR's net sales hit $21,903,997, but the real story is the return to profitability in Q3 2025, posting net income of $67,572-a sharp reversal from the prior year's loss. We're seeing a classic value play here, especially since insiders still hold a significant 22.7% of the shares, plus institutional ownership is nearly 19.51%; that's a lot of conviction for a company that only just reported $0.07 in Earnings Per Share (EPS) for the third quarter. So, are these sophisticated buyers betting on the 18.2% jump in Q3 fastener sales to automotive customers to be a sustainable trend, or is there a deeper, hidden asset value driving the demand?

Who Invests in Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR) and Why?

You're looking at Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR), a century-old industrial name, and trying to figure out who's actually buying a stock with an $8.7M market capitalization as of November 2025. The direct takeaway is that CVR is overwhelmingly a retail investor story, but the institutional players who are involved are highly specific, mostly focused on deep-value and quantitative strategies.

Here's the quick math on CVR's ownership structure: Retail investors-that's you and me, plus smaller private accounts-hold the vast majority at a dominant 80.80% of outstanding shares. This leaves institutional investors, like mutual funds and hedge funds, with about 18.19%, and company insiders holding a small 1.01%. That high retail figure means the stock can be volatile, but it also means the institutional money that is there is highly intentional.

Key Investor Types and Their Footprint

The institutional ownership, though less than one-fifth of the company, is concentrated in a few powerful names. These aren't your typical large-cap growth funds; they are specialists. For instance, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP, a firm known for its quantitative, small-cap value approach, is a top holder with 62,810 shares as of mid-2025. Vanguard Group Inc. also holds a significant stake, primarily through its index funds like the Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund (VTSMX).

Renaissance Technologies LLC, a major quantitative hedge fund, is also a key player, holding 32,010 shares in 2025. Their involvement suggests a sophisticated, algorithm-driven strategy, likely focused on short-term mispricings or deep-value metrics. This mix of passive index funds, dedicated value funds, and quant hedge funds tells a story about the stock's profile.

• Retail: 80.80%-The core owner base.
• Institutional: 18.19%-The smart money specialists.
• Insiders: 1.01%-Minimal direct management stake.

Investment Motivations: Value, Income, and Turnaround

So, why are these institutions buying? It boils down to a classic value proposition. CVR operates in the core fastener and assembly equipment industry, serving cyclical sectors like automotive. The stock is trading at a significant discount to its book value, with a Price-to-Book (P/B) ratio around 0.4. That's a deep-value signal, suggesting the company's assets are worth more than its current market price. This is a classic 'cigar butt' investment, where you buy a decent asset for pennies on the dollar.

Also, income still matters. CVR maintains a quarterly cash dividend of $0.03 per share, declared in November 2025. This results in a forward annual payout of $0.12 and a forward yield of about 1.32%. For a micro-cap stock, a consistent dividend, even a small one, attracts income-focused investors who see it as a sign of financial stability and a commitment to shareholders, despite the trailing twelve-month (TTM) net loss of -$3.5M through September 30, 2025. Honesty, that dividend is a big psychological anchor for shareholders.

The final motivation is a potential turnaround. While TTM revenue is $26.0M, the company showed a positive net income of $67,572 in the third quarter of 2025 on net sales of $7,360,284. Investors are betting on this positive shift continuing, especially as industrial demand stabilizes. You can read more about the long-term vision in the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR).

Investment Strategies in Play

The strategies used by CVR investors are a microcosm of the market's approach to micro-cap stocks with a tangible asset base:

• Deep Value Investing: Focus on the P/B ratio of 0.4, assuming a market correction will bring the stock price closer to the liquidation or asset value.
• Passive/Index Tracking: Funds from Vanguard are likely buying simply to track the performance of the entire small-cap universe, making their position non-discretionary.
• Quantitative/Event-Driven: Hedge funds like Renaissance Technologies are likely using complex models to exploit short-term volatility or anticipated corporate actions, such as a potential sale or strategic shift, given the low valuation.

What this estimate hides is the high risk involved. The stock price dropped over 51% between November 2024 and October 2025. You're not buying a steady grower; you're buying a cheap asset with a small income stream, hoping for a significant rerating or a major operational improvement. Your action plan should start with: Finance: Calculate the tangible book value per share by Friday to confirm the deep-value thesis.

Institutional Ownership and Major Shareholders of Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR)

You're looking at Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR) and trying to figure out who the big money is and what they're doing. The direct takeaway is that while institutional ownership is low for a public company, the presence of major index funds and quantitative (quant) players still validates CVR's niche position, even as retail investors hold the vast majority of the stock.

As of the most recent filings in 2025, institutional investors hold approximately 18.19% of Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. stock. This is a micro-cap stock reality: the general public, or retail investors, own the lion's share, roughly 80.80% of the company. That's a huge difference from a large-cap stock where institutions often hold 60% or more.

Top Institutional Investors and Their Stakes

The largest institutional holders of Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. are primarily passive index funds and quantitative investment managers. Their presence, though small in percentage, signals that CVR is included in certain small-cap or micro-cap indices (like the Russell Microcap), which triggers automatic buying by index-tracking funds. Here's the quick math on the top holders based on Q2/Q3 2025 filings:

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP and Vanguard Group Inc. are typically passive investors, meaning they buy and hold to track an index. Renaissance Technologies LLC, on the other hand, is a major hedge fund known for its quantitative, or algorithmic, trading strategies. You've got index funds providing a stable base and quant funds adding potential for volatility. That's the small-cap mix.

Recent Shifts and Ownership Changes

The recent 13F filings show some notable activity in 2025, which is what you really need to watch. Institutional investors collectively hold a total of 175,467 shares, but the movement among them tells a story of tactical shifts. We've seen a net increase in institutional holders, but the largest funds are showing mixed signals.

For example, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP decreased its position by 0.647% as of June 30, 2025. Vanguard Group Inc. also trimmed its stake slightly, down 0.663% by September 30, 2025. These small-percentage decreases from passive funds aren't a red flag; they often just reflect minor rebalancing to match the index weightings.

But then you have the aggressive buyers, which is what gets interesting:

• UBS Group AG increased its position by a massive 143.895% as of June 30, 2025, adding 2,675 shares.
• Other smaller firms like Harbour Investments, Inc. showed an even larger percentage increase of 456.79%, though the share count is small.

When a major global bank like UBS Group AG makes a triple-digit percentage increase, it suggests a new analyst or portfolio manager has put CVR on their radar as a deep-value or event-driven play. This kind of aggressive buying in a small-float stock can defintely create a short-term price floor.

Impact on Stock Price and Strategy

The role of these institutional investors in a micro-cap company like Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. is less about direct strategic control and more about market credibility and liquidity. Since institutional ownership is low, the stock is considered 'off the radar' of most major Wall Street analysts.

The high retail ownership means individual investors have a surprisingly large collective voice in corporate governance matters, like voting on directors or dividend policy. Retail investors can collectively play a major role in decisions affecting shareholder returns. Still, the institutional presence is crucial:

• Credibility: The mere fact that firms like Vanguard and Renaissance Technologies LLC hold shares gives CVR a degree of validation (or 'street cred') in the investment community.
• Liquidity: When institutional funds trade, they can cause volatility. A large fund selling even a few thousand shares can move the price significantly in a low-volume stock like CVR. They are the elephants in the bathtub.
• Strategy: While they don't dictate the day-to-day, their focus on long-term value (like Dimensional Fund Advisors LP) aligns with CVR's century-long operational history and its core values, which you can read more about here: Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR).

What this estimate hides is the potential for institutional 'herd effect,' where multiple funds buy or sell simultaneously, pushing the price away from its equilibrium in the short term. The stock's price decline of 51.61% from November 2024 to October 2025 shows that despite the institutional base, the stock is not immune to significant market pressure.

Next step for you: Analyze the trading volume of the top buyers to see if their recent accumulation has continued into Q4 2025.

Key Investors and Their Impact on Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR)

You're looking at Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR), a micro-cap stock, and trying to figure out who the major players are and why they are holding. The ownership structure here is unique: it's dominated by retail investors, but the institutional presence provides a crucial signal about the company's value characteristics.

Institutional investors hold only about 18.19% to 19.87% of the stock, which is low for a publicly traded company. This means the stock's day-to-day liquidity and price action are heavily influenced by the remaining 80.80% held by retail investors and insiders. Still, the few large funds that do own CVR are highly notable, and their presence validates the stock's profile as a deep small-cap value play.

The largest single shareholder is the Estate of Walter W. Morrissey, holding 84,120 shares, which represents an 8.71% stake as of March 2025. This significant insider-related holding suggests a strong, long-term commitment from the company's founding family, which often acts as a stabilizing force but can also limit the pressure for strategic change.

Here is a snapshot of the top institutional holders and their recent positions as of mid-to-late 2025:

Investor Influence: Systematic vs. Strategic Holders

The key institutional investors are not activist in the traditional sense; they are systematic investors. Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA), the largest institutional holder, is a pioneer in factor-based investing (a systematic approach that favors stocks with certain characteristics, like small size and low relative price, or 'value').

• DFA's stake is typically passive in terms of management influence, meaning they won't demand a board seat or a strategy shift.
• Their influence is subtle: it confirms CVR fits the academic profile of a small-cap value stock, which draws capital from other funds tracking similar factors.
• Similarly, Vanguard Group Inc.'s holding is largely through index funds, providing a stable, long-term base of capital that is price-insensitive but also non-interventionalist.

Renaissance Technologies (RenTech), on the other hand, is a quantitative hedge fund. Their investment is based purely on complex mathematical models that detect short-term price inefficiencies. Their stake is a quantitative signal, not a strategic endorsement of the company's long-term business model. They will buy and sell based on their algorithms, not on an analysis of CVR's Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR).

Recent Moves and the Activist Watchlist

In the near-term, institutional activity suggests a cautious, but not wholesale, retreat from the stock. For instance, in the first half of 2025, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP slightly reduced their stake by -0.647% (selling 409 shares), and Renaissance Technologies LLC cut their position by -2.14% (selling 700 shares) as of June 30, 2025. This is normal portfolio rebalancing for systematic funds, especially given the stock's price decline of over 50% from November 2024 to October 2025.

But you should defintely keep an eye on the activist players. Cannell Capital LLC, a known small-cap activist firm, has a history with CVR, holding 11,486 shares valued at $202K as of late 2023. While they have not filed a recent 13D (a form indicating an intent to influence management) in 2025, their presence is a latent risk/opportunity. Activist investors like Cannell often target micro-cap companies with significant family or insider ownership-like CVR-to push for a sale, a dividend recapitalization, or a change in capital allocation. Their current holding is small, but their reputation is big. One clean one-liner: Activist interest is a catalyst, not a guarantee.

Here's the quick math on recent share changes (Q2/Q3 2025):

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP: Decreased by 409 shares (Q2 2025).
• Renaissance Technologies LLC: Decreased by 700 shares (Q2 2025).
• UBS Group AG: Increased their position by 143.895% (buying 2,675 shares in Q2 2025), a notable accumulation from a major bank's asset management arm.

The key takeaway is that the systematic funds are trimming their positions slightly, likely due to the stock's price drop, but the small, aggressive buying from a firm like UBS Group AG suggests some large investors still see value in CVR's underlying assets or its Q3 2025 net income of $67,572, a return to profitability from a loss in the prior year period.

Market Impact and Investor Sentiment

You're looking at Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR) and trying to figure out if the big money is buying in or heading for the exits. The quick takeaway is that institutional sentiment is mixed, leaning toward cautious portfolio trimming, but the stock's massive decline over the past year suggests a deeply negative overall market reaction that outweighs the recent positive financial moves.

As a micro-cap stock, Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. has a relatively low institutional ownership, sitting at about 18.19% to 19.87% of the total shares outstanding. This means the majority of the stock-around 80.80%-is held by retail investors, which can lead to higher volatility and less predictable price movements. This is defintely a stock where the individual investor holds the reins, not the large funds. Insider ownership is minimal, at just 1.01%, with no reported insider buying or selling over the last 12 months.

Major Shareholders: The Cautious Giants

The largest institutional holders are primarily passive or quantitative funds, which often hold small positions in micro-cap companies as part of a broader strategy (like small-cap index tracking). Their recent activity shows a subtle, but important, trend of caution.

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP: The largest holder with about 62,810 shares, valued at roughly $565.29k as of mid-2025. They've shown a small decrease in shares held.
• Vanguard Group Inc.: Holds around 40,572 shares, or 4.20% of the company.
• Renaissance Technologies LLC: Holds about 32,010 shares, valued at approximately $288.09k. They also showed a slight reduction in their position in mid-2025.

To be fair, not all institutional movement is negative. UBS Group AG, for instance, dramatically increased its position by over 143% in the second quarter of 2025, though their total holding remains a smaller piece of the pie. This mixed signal shows some funds are seeing a potential deep-value play, but the largest dedicated holders are mostly trimming or holding steady.

Recent Market Reactions: A Sharp Decline

The stock market's response to Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. over the past year has been brutal. The share price was trading at $19.12 on November 4, 2024, but by October 31, 2025, it had plummeted to $9.25 per share. That's a massive decline of 51.61% in a single year. You don't see a drop like that without serious underlying concerns, and the market is clearly pricing in significant risk.

Here's the quick math on the recent financial news, though: The company announced a return to profitability in its Q3 2025 report (filed November 7, 2025), posting net income of $67,572 (or $0.07 per share) compared to a loss of $1.45 million in the same period in 2024. Net sales also increased by 5.6% to $7.36 million. Plus, the board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.03 per share in November 2025, payable in December 2025. This return to positive earnings and the dividend declaration are strong, concrete steps that should theoretically boost sentiment, but the stock's overall trajectory shows investors are still highly skeptical.

Analyst Perspectives: Bearish Technicals and a 'Going Concern' Warning

The analyst community, particularly those focused on quantitative and technical signals, remains bearish on Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. in the near-term. Technical indicators as of November 2025 are leaning toward a 'Sell' signal, suggesting a bearish outlook for the mid-term. This is a clear warning for trend-following investors.

What this estimate hides, and what you need to focus on, is the fundamental risk. The most significant red flag is the 'going concern' doubt raised by the company's auditor, Crowe LLP, in the March 28, 2025 10-K report for the 2024 fiscal year. A 'going concern' warning means the auditor has substantial doubt about the company's ability to continue operating for the next year. While the Q3 2025 earnings show a positive turn, this auditor's warning is a major hurdle for any large, risk-averse institutional investor. This is the kind of risk that keeps portfolio managers up at night.

If you want to dig into the company's roots and operational structure, you can find a solid overview here: Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. (CVR): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money. The bottom line is that while recent financials show a glimmer of hope, the market is still treating Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. like a high-risk turnaround play, a view heavily influenced by the auditor's warning and the stock's massive price correction.