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Quite a few insiders have dramatically grown their holdings in George Weston Limited (TSE:WN) over the past 12 months. An insider's optimism about the company's prospects is a positive sign.
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.
See our latest analysis for George Weston
George Weston Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Chairman & CEO Galen Weston for CA$25m worth of shares, at about CA$196 per share. Even though the purchase was made at a significantly lower price than the recent price (CA$222), we still think insider buying is a positive. While it does suggest insiders consider the stock undervalued at lower prices, this transaction doesn't tell us much about what they think of current prices.
Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 135.30k shares worth CA$26m. But insiders sold 54.77k shares worth CA$12m. In total, George Weston insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!
There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. If investing in lesser known companies is your style, you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).
George Weston Insiders Are Selling The Stock
The last quarter saw substantial insider selling of George Weston shares. In total, insiders dumped CA$8.4m worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. This may suggest that some insiders think that the shares are not cheap.
Insider Ownership Of George Weston
For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. George Weston insiders own 0.5% of the company, currently worth about CA$152m 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.
So What Do The George Weston Insider Transactions Indicate?
Insiders sold George Weston shares recently, but they didn't buy any. On the other hand, the insider transactions over the last year are encouraging. We are also comforted by the high levels of insider ownership. So we're not too bothered by recent selling. 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. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for George Weston you should be aware of.