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When a single insider purchases stock, it is typically not a major deal. However, when multiple insiders purchase stock, like in ECB Bancorp, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:ECBK) instance, it's good news for shareholders.
While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.
See our latest analysis for ECB Bancorp
The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At ECB Bancorp
In fact, the recent purchase by Secretary John Citrano was not their only acquisition of ECB Bancorp shares this year. Earlier in the year, they paid US$13.85 per share in a US$131k purchase. That implies that an insider found the current price of US$14.31 per share to be enticing. Of course they may have changed their mind. But this suggests they are optimistic. While we always like to see insider buying, it's less meaningful if the purchases were made at much lower prices, as the opportunity they saw may have passed. In this case we're pleased to report that the insider purchases were made at close to current prices.
In the last twelve months insiders purchased 32.38k shares for US$428k. But insiders sold 5.60k shares worth US$65k. Overall, ECB Bancorp insiders were net buyers during the last year. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!
ECB Bancorp is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find small cap companies at attractive valuations, this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.
ECB Bancorp Insiders Bought Stock Recently
Over the last quarter, ECB Bancorp insiders have spent a meaningful amount on shares. We can see that Secretary John Citrano paid US$95k for shares in the company. No-one sold. This is a positive in our book as it implies some confidence.
Insider Ownership Of ECB Bancorp
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. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. ECB Bancorp insiders own about US$10m worth of shares. That equates to 7.9% 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.