Yahoo Finance Have Insiders Been Buying John Menzies plc (LON:MNZS) Shares This Year?
We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So we'll take a look at whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in John Menzies plc (LON:MNZS).
Do Insider Transactions Matter?
It's quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information.
Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. For example, a Harvard University study found that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year'.
Check out our latest analysis for John Menzies
The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At John Menzies
The CFO & Executive Director Alvaro Gomez-Reino made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for UK£120k worth of shares at a price of UK£2.99 each. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (UK£3.44), we still think insider buying is a positive. Because the shares were purchased at a lower price, this particular buy doesn't tell us much about how insiders feel about the current share price.
Alvaro Gomez-Reino bought a total of 90.00k shares over the year at an average price of UK£2.23. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!
John Menzies is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.
Does John Menzies Boast High Insider Ownership?
Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Our data indicates that John Menzies insiders own about UK£5.4m worth of shares (which is 1.9% of the company). We do note, however, it is possible insiders have an indirect interest through a private company or other corporate structure. Whilst better than nothing, we're not overly impressed by these holdings.
So What Does This Data Suggest About John Menzies Insiders?
It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. However, we note that the company didn't make a profit over the last twelve months, which makes us cautious. On this analysis the only slight negative we see is the fairly low (overall) insider ownership; their transactions suggest that they are quite positive on John Menzies stock. While we like knowing what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. For example, John Menzies has 2 warning signs (and 1 which is a bit concerning) we think you should know about.
If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.
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, but not derivative transactions.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.
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