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We've lost count of how many times insiders have accumulated shares in a company that goes on to improve markedly. 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 before you buy or sell Avanza Bank Holding AB (publ) (STO:AZA), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.
Do Insider Transactions Matter?
Most investors know that it is quite permissible for company leaders, such as directors of the board, to buy and sell stock in the 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 logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise.
View our latest analysis for Avanza Bank Holding
Avanza Bank Holding Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Deputy CEO & CFO Birgitta Hagenfeldt for kr474k worth of shares, at about kr68.00 per share. Although we like to see insider buying, we note that this large purchase was at significantly below the recent price of kr104. 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.
While Avanza Bank Holding insiders bought shares last year, they didn't sell. You can see the insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!
There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. So if that suits your style you could check each stock one by one or you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).
Insider Ownership
Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Avanza Bank Holding insiders own about kr770m worth of shares. That equates to 4.8% of the company. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.