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The fact that multiple Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) insiders offloaded a considerable amount of shares over the past year could have raised some eyebrows amongst investors. Knowing whether insiders are buying is usually more helpful when evaluating insider transactions, as insider selling can have various explanations. However, shareholders should take a deeper look if several insiders are selling stock over a specific time period.
While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.
View our latest analysis for Arthur J. Gallagher
The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Arthur J. Gallagher
The insider, Susan Pietrucha, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$5.2m worth of shares at a price of US$212 each. That means that an insider was selling shares at slightly below the current price (US$226). As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. It is worth noting that this sale was 99% of Susan Pietrucha's holding.
In the last year Arthur J. Gallagher insiders didn't buy any company stock. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!
If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.
Arthur J. Gallagher Insiders Are Selling The Stock
The last quarter saw substantial insider selling of Arthur J. Gallagher shares. In total, Corporate VP & CFO Douglas Howell dumped US$5.9m worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. Overall this makes us a bit cautious, but it's not the be all and end all.
Does Arthur J. Gallagher Boast High Insider Ownership?
I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Arthur J. Gallagher insiders own 1.1% of the company, currently worth about US$557m based on the recent share price. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.