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Balance sheet (deeper)

Minority Interest

The share of a partly owned subsidiary's equity that belongs to outside shareholders, not the parent.

Part of the Reading Financial Statements course · Lesson 24 of 33
Formula
Minority Interest = Outside Ownership % × Subsidiary Net Assets

What it is

Minority interest, now usually called non-controlling interest (NCI), is the portion of a consolidated subsidiary that the parent company does not own. When a parent controls but does not fully own a subsidiary, it consolidates 100% of that subsidiary's results, then sets aside the outside owners' slice. It appears within the equity section of the balance sheet.

Why it matters

Because the parent reports the whole subsidiary, minority interest tells you how much of the consolidated assets and profits actually belong to other investors. Ignoring it overstates what the parent's own shareholders own and earn. It matters most for holding companies and conglomerates with many partly owned units.

How it's calculated

It is the outside ownership percentage applied to the subsidiary's net assets (for the balance sheet) and to its net income (for the income statement).

How Quintarthai uses it

Non-controlling interest shows up in the equity section and as a deduction from net income on the Financials tab of a company page for groups with partly owned subsidiaries.

Cross-border note. Both US GAAP and IFRS require minority interest to be presented within equity (not as a separate mezzanine line) and use the term non-controlling interest, so treatment is consistent for Canadian and US filers.

FAQ

Why is the whole subsidiary consolidated if the parent owns less than 100%?
Consolidation is based on control, not ownership level. Once a parent controls a subsidiary (usually above 50%), it reports all of its assets, liabilities, and results, then carves out the outside owners' portion as minority interest.
Should I subtract minority interest when valuing the parent?
In enterprise-value calculations, minority interest is typically added to arrive at total enterprise value, and per-share metrics should use the income attributable to the parent's own shareholders.
Related terms
See Minority Interest on a real company
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