In This Article:
Want to participate in a short research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card!
It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. The flip side of that is that there are more than a few examples of insiders dumping stock prior to a period of weak performance. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in China Gas Holdings Limited (HKG:384).
What Is Insider Buying?
It is perfectly legal for company insiders, including board members, to buy and sell stock in a company. However, rules govern insider transactions, and certain disclosures are required.
Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. 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'.
Check out our latest analysis for China Gas Holdings
The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At China Gas Holdings
In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the VP, Finance Director & Executive Director, Weiwei Zhu, sold HK$36m worth of shares at a price of HK$27.26 per share. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of HK$27.85, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. It is worth noting that this sale was only 16.4% of Weiwei Zhu's holding.
Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid HK$64m for 2.5m shares. On the other hand they divested 5.5m shares, for HK$151m. In total, China Gas Holdings insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!
If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).
Insiders at China Gas Holdings Have Sold Stock Recently
There was substantially more insider selling, than buying, of China Gas Holdings shares over the last three months. In that time, Weiwei Zhu dumped HK$81m worth of shares. On the flip side, Executive Chairman Ming Liu spent HK$7.4m on purchasing shares. Generally this level of net selling might be considered a bit bearish.