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 OZ Minerals Limited (ASX:OZL).
What Is Insider Buying?
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.
We would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. For example, a Harvard University study found that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year.'
View our latest analysis for OZ Minerals
OZ Minerals Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
There wasn't any very large single transaction over the last year, but we can still observe some trading.
Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 15900 shares worth AU$151k. OZ Minerals insiders may have bought shares in the last year, but they didn't sell any. The chart below shows insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!
There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.
Does OZ Minerals Boast High Insider Ownership?
For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Our data indicates that OZ Minerals insiders own about AU$13m worth of shares (which is 0.4% of the company). Overall, this level of ownership isn't that impressive, but it's certainly better than nothing!
What Might The Insider Transactions At OZ Minerals Tell Us?
There haven't been any insider transactions in the last three months -- that doesn't mean much. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Insiders own shares in OZ Minerals and we see no evidence to suggest they are worried about the future. Therefore, you should should definitely take a look at this FREE report showing analyst forecasts for OZ Minerals.
But note: OZ Minerals may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.