Have NatWest Group Insiders Been Selling Stock?
We wouldn't blame NatWest Group plc (LON:NWG) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that John-Paul Thwaite, the Group CEO & Executive Director recently netted about UK£1.8m selling shares at an average price of UK£6.90. That sale reduced their total holding by 17% which is hardly insignificant, but far from the worst we've seen.
NatWest Group Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
In fact, the recent sale by John-Paul Thwaite was the biggest sale of NatWest Group shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That means that an insider was selling shares at below the current price (UK£7.00). We generally consider it a negative if insiders have been selling, especially if they did so below the current price, because it implies that they considered a lower price to be reasonable. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. We note that the biggest single sale was only 17% of John-Paul Thwaite's holding.
In the last twelve months insiders purchased 42.84k shares for UK£264k. But they sold 648.67k shares for UK£4.1m. In total, NatWest Group insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!
Check out our latest analysis for NatWest Group
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Does NatWest Group Boast High Insider Ownership?
Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. NatWest Group insiders own about UK£16m worth of shares. That equates to 0.03% of the company. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.
So What Does This Data Suggest About NatWest Group Insiders?
The stark truth for NatWest Group is that there has been more insider selling than insider buying in the last three months. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. But it is good to see that NatWest Group is growing earnings. Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales. We'd practice some caution before buying! So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. While conducting our analysis, we found that NatWest Group has 2 warning signs and it would be unwise to ignore these.
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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.
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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.