Exploring eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI) Investor Profile: Who’s Buying and Why?

You're looking at eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI) and seeing a confusing set of signals: a real estate technology company that just reported Q3 2025 revenue of $1.32 billion, a solid 7% increase year-over-year, but still trades with a relatively small market capitalization of $1.58 billion. This mix of growth and modest valuation makes you wonder who is actually buying this stock and why, especially when the institutional money (like BlackRock, Inc. and Vanguard Group Inc.) is a massive factor. Honestly, the investor profile is defintely unusual; while major institutions own a significant chunk-Vanguard Group Inc. alone held over 13.4 million shares as of Q3 2025-insiders still control a huge 43% of the company. So, are the big funds accumulating for a long-term play on the cloud-based brokerage model, or are they quietly exiting as the company posted a slim $3.5 million in net income for the quarter? We need to map the money flow right now.

Who Invests in eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI) and Why?

You want to know who is betting on eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI) and what their thesis is, and the short answer is: a powerful mix of insiders, passive giants, and retail investors, all drawn to a unique, highly-leveraged business model. The ownership structure is actually the first thing that stands out, as it's heavily skewed toward those who know the company best-the insiders and agents themselves.

The investor profile for EXPI is not typical, largely because of the company's agent-as-owner model, which blurs the line between employee and shareholder. This structure means the company's largest investors are often the people who are also driving its revenue.

Key Investor Types: The Ownership Breakdown

The ownership structure of eXp World Holdings, Inc. is a fascinating triangle of insiders, institutions, and the general public, where the insiders hold a disproportionately large stake. This high insider ownership is a clear signal of management's confidence, but it also means fewer shares are freely traded (lower float), which can increase volatility.

Here is the approximate breakdown of who owns the company's stock, based on recent 2025 filings:

Note: Institutional ownership percentages vary depending on the reporting date and source, but the significant presence of major firms is constant.

Among the institutional heavyweights, you see the usual suspects, primarily passive index funds, which simply track the market. Firms like Vanguard Group Inc. and Blackrock, Inc. are consistently among the top holders, reflecting the stock's inclusion in various exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and indices. They buy because the index tells them to.

Investment Motivations: Growth, Income, and Tech

Investors are attracted to eXp World Holdings, Inc. for three main reasons: its global growth trajectory, its unique agent-centric financial model, and its commitment to returning capital to shareholders.

• Global Technology Growth: The company is actively transitioning from a real estate brokerage to a technology platform. This is a huge shift. Management is targeting expansion to 50 countries by 2030, a clear growth play. The international segment is a bright spot, reporting a 68% increase in revenue year-over-year, which is a big number that excites growth investors.
• Income and Capital Returns: For value and income investors, the consistent capital return program is key. The company has returned over $800 million to shareholders through buybacks and dividends over time. In Q4 2025, the Board declared a cash dividend of $0.05 per share, giving the stock a current dividend yield of approximately 1.86%.
• Operational Efficiency: The cloud-based brokerage model eliminates the massive overhead of traditional brick-and-mortar offices. In Q3 2025, the company reported revenue of $1.3 billion and a net income of $3.5 million, demonstrating that the model can be profitable even in a challenging real estate market.

The company is essentially a tech-enabled real estate play with a dividend. That's a compelling combination.

Investment Strategies: Long-Term Holding is the Core

The dominant strategy for holding eXp World Holdings, Inc. stock is a long-term, growth-oriented approach, driven by the mechanics of the business itself. The company's unique revenue share and stock award programs are defintely designed to promote long-term holding, not quick trading.

Here's the quick math on the long-term play: agents are awarded stock (EXPI equity) for hitting production milestones (like the ICON Agent award, which returns their capped commission in stock) and for attracting other agents. This stock often has vesting periods, meaning agents-who make up a large portion of the shareholder base-are structurally incentivized to hold the stock for years to build generational wealth.

• Long-Term Growth Investors: They focus on the agent value stack (revenue share, stock awards) as a competitive moat, noting that the agent attrition rate has improved by 18% year over year due to these incentives. They are betting on the company's ability to scale its agent count globally and increase agent productivity (teams are 79% more productive than individual agents).
• Value Investors: They look at metrics like Price-to-Cash Flow (P/CF), which at approximately 12.45x in Q2 2025, sits near the industry average of 12.78x. This suggests the stock is fairly valued relative to its peers, offering a margin of safety for those who believe in the long-term growth story.
• Momentum Traders: Given the stock's tendency to react sharply to earnings, short-term traders look for momentum plays. For example, following the Q3 2025 earnings report, the stock gained 5.47% in the following week. This volatility is a double-edged sword, but it creates opportunities for those focused on near-term price action.

The ultimate goal for most investors, though, is tied to the company's ability to execute its vision, which you can read more about in eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money.

Institutional Ownership and Major Shareholders of eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI)

You need to know who is really buying eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI) and why, because institutional money moves markets, but in this case, the insiders are the real power players. While institutional investors hold a significant stake, the company's ownership story is defintely dominated by its founders, which changes the risk/reward profile for outside investors.

As of late 2025, institutional investors own roughly 39.47% of eXp World Holdings, Inc.'s common stock. This is a healthy level that suggests professional credibility, but it is actually less than the insider ownership. The combined stake of CEO Glenn Sanford and Penny Sanford, the two largest individual shareholders, is a massive 41.9%, valued at over $719 million combined based on recent share prices. This means management has skin in the game, but also immense control over strategic direction.

Top Institutional Investors and Their Shareholdings

The largest institutional investors in eXp World Holdings, Inc. are the big index fund managers-the passive money that tracks major benchmarks. These firms buy because eXp World Holdings, Inc. is part of an index, not necessarily due to a deep, active conviction in the stock, but their sheer size makes them important.

The top two institutional holders, Vanguard Group Inc. and BlackRock, Inc., together own a substantial chunk of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. holds approximately 13.42 million shares, with a market value of about $143.08 million as of November 2025. BlackRock, Inc. is right behind them, holding over 12.66 million shares, valued at around $132.15 million.

Here's the quick math on the top institutional holders based on the most recent Q3/Q4 2025 filings:

Recent Shifts in Institutional Ownership

Recent activity shows a mixed but generally active picture. Over the last quarter, institutions were net sellers by value, selling about $706.4 million worth of stock versus buying $664.6 million worth over the last six months, suggesting some trimming of positions. Still, the number of institutions increasing their positions (120) was higher than those decreasing.

You see some big players making aggressive moves. For instance, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake by a huge 80.284%, adding 669,209 shares in the third quarter of 2025. This shows a strong conviction from certain active managers. On the flip side, a firm like Morgan Stanley cut its position by over 20%, selling 395,968 shares. This is normal volatility in a stock like eXp World Holdings, Inc. that has seen a 12-month total shareholder return of -17.3% despite recent Q3 2025 profitability.

• Increased positions: 120 institutions added a total of 6,841,220 shares.
• Decreased positions: Institutions sold off a total of 4,371,006 shares.
• Net activity: The net flow of shares suggests a slight cooling, but targeted accumulation by active funds is still happening.

Impact of Large Investors on Stock and Strategy

Institutional investors play two key roles: they provide liquidity and they can influence corporate strategy. For eXp World Holdings, Inc., their impact is nuanced because of the high insider ownership. The founders hold the voting power, but the institutions provide the market's stamp of approval.

The fact that eXp World Holdings, Inc. reported a return to profitability in Q3 2025, with revenue up 6.9% year-over-year to $1.32 billion and GAAP earnings per share (EPS) of $0.02, is what keeps the institutional money engaged. They are betting on the scalable cloud-based model and the accelerating global expansion into markets like Peru, Turkey, and Japan.

The passive index funds like Vanguard and BlackRock provide a stable floor for the stock price, as they are long-term holders tied to the index. The active funds, like the one that grew its stake by over 80%, are likely responding to the company's renewed growth initiatives and the fact that the stock is trading at a notable discount to the analyst consensus fair value of $12.00 per share as of November 2025. You can dig deeper into the company's recent performance here: Breaking Down eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors.

The clear action here is to watch the next 13F filings-the quarterly reports of institutional holdings-to see if the net selling trend reverses after the Q3 profit announcement. If it does, that's a signal that the big money is buying into the turnaround story.

Key Investors and Their Impact on eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI)

You need to understand who actually owns the company to predict its long-term strategy, and for eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI), the picture is split: the founders hold the reins, but big institutions provide the necessary capital ballast.

The company's ownership structure is defintely unique. Insiders-the people running the show-retain a massive stake, but the largest investment funds in the world are also major players. This dual structure means you have a company where the founders' vision is paramount, but institutional pressure for consistent financial performance is a constant factor.

The Founders' Dominance: A 43% Insider Stake

The most important investors in eXp World Holdings, Inc. are its own insiders, primarily the founders. As of October 2025, insiders collectively own a significant 43% of the common stock. That's a huge percentage for a publicly traded company.

This level of control means the company is run with a clear, founder-led mandate, minimizing the risk of outside shareholder activism forcing a change in core strategy. The largest individual shareholders are CEO Glenn Sanford, who holds a 25% stake, and Penny Sanford, who holds 17%. Here's the quick math: their combined stake is more than enough to control any shareholder vote, so the company's direction is firmly tied to their long-term vision for a cloud-based real estate platform.

• Founder-led vision drives core strategy.
• High insider ownership limits activist investor influence.
• Major decisions are tied to the Sanford family's long-term plan.

Institutional Giants and Their Passive Power

While insiders control the vote, institutional investors provide liquidity and a significant portion of the market capitalization. As of the Q3 2025 filings, eXp World Holdings, Inc. had 431 institutional owners holding a total of 78,830,194 shares. This translates to approximately 55.54% institutional ownership, depending on the calculation methodology. They are passive investors, largely holding the stock through index funds and ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds), but their sheer size influences the stock's daily trading volume and valuation multiples.

The top institutional shareholders are names you know well, mostly passive giants. They aren't looking to change the business model; they are buying the stock because it's in a specific index or fits their quantitative models. This is a passive investment, not an activist one.

The top institutional holders as of September 30, 2025, are:

You can learn more about the company's foundation and business model at eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money.

Recent Investor Activity: Net Selling and Capital Returns

The most recent 13F filings for Q3 2025 show a mixed but cautious sentiment from the institutional side. While a few major players increased their stakes, the overall flow was negative. Institutions bought 35 million shares but sold a higher volume of 43.9 million shares in the last quarter, indicating a net selling trend. This net divestment suggests some funds are taking profits or reducing exposure to the real estate technology sector's volatility.

Still, some large funds showed confidence. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holding by 1,557,600 shares, and BlackRock, Inc. added 427,513 shares as of the September 30, 2025, reporting date. Conversely, insiders have been net sellers over the past three months leading up to November 2025. What this estimate hides is the nature of the sales; they are often for liquidity or tax planning, not a loss of confidence. But it's still a headwind.

On the company's part, management is actively supporting the stock price through capital returns. In Q3 2025, eXp World Holdings, Inc. returned $24.1 million to shareholders, split between $16.4 million in stock repurchases and $7.7 million in cash dividends. This action is a clear signal to shareholders that management believes the stock is undervalued and is committed to capital discipline.

Market Impact and Investor Sentiment

You're looking at eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI) and seeing a disconnect: strong insider ownership but a mixed signal from Wall Street. This is a classic real estate tech story where the long-term vision butts up against near-term market realities. The overall investor sentiment is best described as cautiously skeptical, driven by a 'Reduce' consensus from analysts, but underpinned by a powerful insider block that keeps the company's direction stable.

The largest shareholder group is the company's own insiders, holding a significant 43% stake as of June 2025. This level of ownership, particularly by Founder, Chairman, and CEO Glenn Sanford and Penny Sanford, who together hold over 51% of the business, is a double-edged sword. It signals deep commitment, but it also means that when insiders sell, the market pays close attention. Insider sentiment is currently negative, driven by significant open-market selling from key executives, including 18 sales by Glenn Sanford in the six months leading up to July 2025, totaling over 425,000 shares for an estimated $4.18 million.

Institutional investors, the big money managers like BlackRock, Inc. and Vanguard Group Inc., hold a substantial portion of the float, with institutional ownership around 36.29% to 49.08% of shares outstanding. Their positions show a baseline of credibility, but their activity is mixed. While some institutions have recently added to their positions, others have reduced them, which is typical in a volatile sector. For example, Vanguard Group Inc. holds roughly 8.5% of the company's stock, while BlackRock, Inc. holds about 8.1%.

Recent Market Reactions and Ownership Moves

Market reactions to eXp World Holdings, Inc.'s news have been nuanced, suggesting investors are looking past single-quarter misses if the strategic narrative holds. One key example is the reaction to the Q2 2025 earnings report. The company missed its earnings per share (EPS) forecast of $0.09 by a wide margin, reporting a net loss per diluted share of $(0.01). Despite this significant miss, the stock price showed resilience, actually increasing by 2.12% in aftermarket trading. That's a classic signal that the market is prioritizing other factors, like the steady revenue of $1.3 billion and the strategic focus on international expansion and technology, over the immediate bottom line.

However, the stock has also shown technical weakness. In November 2025, the stock price passed below its 50-day moving average, trading as low as $10.44. This move, combined with the insider selling, suggests short-term bearish pressure. The stock's performance reflects the broader real estate market's challenges, even as the company's model continues to drive transaction volume. For Q3 2025, real estate sales volume increased 7% to $54.1 billion, demonstrating that the platform is working, even if agent count is slightly down.

• Q3 2025 Revenue: $1.3 billion (up 7% YoY).
• Q3 2025 Net Income: $3.5 million (a return to profitability).
• Q3 2025 Agent Count: 83,446 (a 2% decrease YoY).

Analyst Perspectives: Mapping Risk to Opportunity

The analyst community is playing the role of the trend-aware realist, acknowledging the company's disruptive technology but flagging near-term risks. As of July 2025, the consensus price target for eXp World Holdings, Inc. is $12.00, representing a modest upside from the current trading price. This average target is built on a mixed bag of ratings, including one 'Buy' and two 'Sell' ratings, resulting in a consensus of 'Reduce.'

What this estimate hides is the underlying shift in fundamentals. The market is revising its revenue expectations upward for the full fiscal year 2025. Revenue forecasts for FY2025 are being adjusted up by 2.12% over a three-month period, with an expected full-year revenue of $4.73 billion. This is a defintely positive sign, showing that analysts believe the company's model is generating more top-line growth than previously anticipated, despite the housing market headwinds.

The core of the analyst debate boils down to margin pressure versus technology-driven efficiency. The company's Q3 2025 results showed a modest decline in GAAP gross margin because more of its productive agents are hitting their commission cap, which is a good problem to have, but still hits the margin. To counter this, the company is heavily investing in AI, like the launch of Mira, an AI-powered business assistant, to cut costs. Transaction processing costs, for instance, decreased sequentially by 15% in Q3 2025.

Here's the quick math on the analyst outlook: the average price target suggests a potential upside of around 13.37% from the stock's price of $10.59 (as of an early November 2025 report), but the negative EPS forecast of $(0.10) for the full fiscal year 2025 keeps the risk high. You need to believe in the long-term agent-centric, cloud-based platform to justify the risk. You can learn more about the company's core strategy by reviewing their Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI).

A breakdown of the institutional ownership landscape shows where the conviction lies:

So, the insiders are taking some money off the table, but the biggest index funds and some active managers are still holding or even buying more. It's a tug-of-war between short-term margin concerns and the long-term bet on the cloud-brokerage model.

Next Step: Portfolio Manager: Re-run your discounted cash flow (DCF) model using the new FY2025 revenue forecast of $4.73 billion and the Q3 2025 net income of $3.5 million as a base for a return to profitability.