Yahoo Finance How Many StealthGas Inc. (NASDAQ:GASS) Shares Did Insiders Buy, In The Last Year?
We've lost count of how many times insiders have accumulated shares in a company that goes on to improve markedly. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So we'll take a look at whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in StealthGas Inc. (NASDAQ:GASS).
What Is Insider Selling?
It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information.
We don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions. But equally, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether. For example, a Columbia University study found that 'insiders are more likely to engage in open market purchases of their own company’s stock when the firm is about to reveal new agreements with customers and suppliers'.
See our latest analysis for StealthGas
StealthGas Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
The President Harry Vafias made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$645k worth of shares at a price of US$2.75 each. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, at around the current price, which is US$2.93. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. If someone buys shares at well below current prices, it's a good sign on balance, but keep in mind they may no longer see value. In this case we're pleased to report that the insider bought shares at close to current prices. Harry Vafias was the only individual insider to buy during the last year.
The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!
StealthGas is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.
Insider Ownership of StealthGas
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. Insiders own 22% of StealthGas shares, worth about US$24m. 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 Do The StealthGas Insider Transactions Indicate?
The fact that there have been no StealthGas insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Insiders do have a stake in StealthGas and their transactions don't cause us concern. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing StealthGas. When we did our research, we found 2 warning signs for StealthGas (1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) that we believe deserve your full attention.
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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