Over the past year, insiders sold AU$678k worth of Smart Parking Limited (ASX:SPZ) stock at an average price of AU$0.44 per share allowing them to get the most out of their money. The company's market worth decreased by AU$23m over the past week after the stock price dropped 10%, although insiders were able to minimize their losses
While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.
Check out our latest analysis for Smart Parking
In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the MD, Company Secretary & Executive Director, Paul Gillespie, sold AU$678k worth of shares at a price of AU$0.44 per share. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of AU$0.56, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. We note that the biggest single sale was only 26% of Paul Gillespie's holding. The only individual insider seller over the last year was Paul Gillespie.
The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!
If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: Most of them are flying under the radar).
Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. From our data, it seems that Smart Parking insiders own 4.4% of the company, worth about AU$8.5m. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. We do generally prefer see higher levels of insider ownership.
It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Smart Parking shares in the last quarter. The insider transactions at Smart Parking are not inspiring us to buy. And we're not picking up on high enough insider ownership to give us any comfort. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. You'd be interested to know, that we found 1 warning sign for Smart Parking and we suggest you have a look.
Of course Smart Parking may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.
For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.